The Denver Broncos (+5) are heading east to face the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium. CBS will televise the action and kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET.
Denver Broncos at Baltimore Ravens Betting Preview
In this Sunday AFC game, Baltimore has been projected as the favorite and is currently giving up 5 points. The Broncos are also receiving +160 moneyline odds while the Ravens are -180. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 43.5 points. There might be some decent live betting possibilities in this matchup.
The game’s O/U has shifted down after originally being set at 44. The opening line of -5 has remained firm.
The Broncos are 0-1-1 against the spread (ATS) and have gained 2.0 units this season. The team has posted an O/U record of 1-1. The Ravens have lost 0.1 units so far. The team is 1-1 ATS and has an O/U record of 2-0.
The Broncos have gone 2-0 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Ravens are 1-1 SU.
The Broncos are looking to stay undefeated after a 20-19 victory over Oakland last week where their secondary allowed the Raiders to pass for 288 yards. Amari Cooper had a good day for the Raiders in that one with 116 yards on 10 catches. On the offensive side, Case Keenum completed only 19 passes on 35 attempts for 222 yards and one interception. Phillip Lindsay (107 rushing yards on 14 attempts) propelled the ground attack in the win while Demaryius Thomas (five receptions, 18 yards) and Emmanuel Sanders (four catches, 96 yards) handled the receiving duties.
Baltimore just dropped a 34-23 game to Cincinnati in Week 2. The defense allowed the Bengals to eat up the clock by rushing for 108 yards on 28 attempts. Tyler Boyd put up a good outing for Cincinnati, posting 91 yards on six catches. For Baltimore, Joe Flacco completed 32-of-55 passes for 376 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Alex Collins (35 yards on nine rush attempts) spearheaded the ground game in the defeat as Allen (five receptions, 36 yards) and Michael Crabtree (five catches, 56 yards) led the pass-catching corps.
Denver has run the ball on 44.8 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Baltimore has an overall rush percentage of 37.6 percent. The Broncos have run for 157 yards/game and have two touchdowns via handoffs this year. The Ravens are logging 92 rush yards per game and have four total rushing TDs.
Judging by the early season results, it appears the Broncos should hold an edge in terms of efficiency in the ground game. Their running backs has produced 5.2 yards per carry while their defense is allowing a YPC of 3.6 to opponents. The Ravens have registered 3.3 yards per carry and given up a YPC of 3.8 to opponents.
The Broncos offense has logged 276 yards/contest through the air overall and has three passing TDs so far. The Ravens have recorded 318 pass yards per contest and have five total pass scores.
Defensively, Denver has allowed opponents to rush for an average of 78 yards and pass for 293 yards per game. The Baltimore defense has allowed 181.5 yards per game to opposing passers and 95.5 yards per game to opposing runners. The Ravens are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 4.01 to opposing QBs, while the Broncos have given up a 7.13 ANY/A.
Offensively, Keenum has amassed 222 passing yards on the year, and has connected on 54 percent of his 35 attempts with zero scores through the air and one interception. Keenum’s got a 4.78 adjusted net yards per pass attempt, including 5.54 over the last two outings.
We’re expecting the Broncos to control the pace by getting the ball into the hands of their running backs. In addition to receiver Emmanuel Sanders (96 receiving yards), Phillip Lindsay (107 rush yards, four receiving yards) and Royce Freeman (28 rush yards, one rush TD) have been focal points in the Denver offensive scheme.
On the other sideline, Joe Flacco has completed 32-of-55 passes for 376 yards, two TDs and two INTs. Flacco’s ANY/A sits at 5.24 for the year and 6.44 across his last two games.
The Ravens also like to keep their backfield involved. In addition to John Brown (92 receiving yards, one receiving TD), Alex Collins (35 rush yards, 55 receiving yards) and Willie Snead IV (zero rush yards, 54 receiving yards) have gotten a multitude of touches lately.
Betting Pick: Broncos vs. Ravens
SU Winner – Ravens, ATS Winner – Broncos, O/U – Under
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Notes
Team Betting Trends
The Broncos offense has registered one pass play of 40 or more yards, while the Ravens have put up zero such plays.
The Denver defense has allowed two pass plays of 40 or more yards, while Baltimore has given up zero such plays.
Both defenses have produced zero rushing plays of 20+ yards. The Denver offense has recorded four running plays of 10+ yards while Baltimore has accounted for three such plays.
The Broncos defense has allowed one rushing play of 20+ yards, while the Ravens have given up zero such runs.
The Denver defense has seven sacks on the year while Baltimore has six.
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