Bradford attempted 55 passes and also threw three interceptions for St. Louis, but he definitely gave the team a chance to win. That is really all the Rams can hope for considering they have lost nine straight games since winning at Detroit last November. Nine rookies overall were active against the Cardinals, something head coach Steve Spagnuolo must find a way to deal with.
St. Louis ironically won at Oakland as a 3-point dog the last time they met in 2006, but the Rams have lost 12 in a row against AFC opponents since then. Steven Jackson led the way in that victory with 31 carries for 127 yards and two touchdowns, and he is coming off a solid game vs. Arizona with 81 yards on 22 attempts.
The Rams defense also played well against the Cardinals, sacking quarterback Derek Anderson twice for 31 yards and recovering four of seven total fumbles by Arizona. St. Louis held an advantage in time of possession as well by a nearly 33-27 margin but could not pull off the win.
The Raiders look to bounce back at home following a disappointing 38-13 loss at Tennessee. Oakland entered this season with some optimism after losing 11 games or more for seven straight seasons, but the season opener did very little to show any signs of a turnaround.
New quarterback Jason Campbell struggled for the Raiders in his first game with the team, getting sacked four times and throwing for 180 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Oakland’s defense was supposed to be a strength this season but surrendered 205 rushing yards to the Titans, including a 76-yard touchdown run by Chris Johnson.
One positive for Oakland offensively was running back Darren McFadden, who rushed 18 times for 95 yards after dealing with numerous injuries during his young career. McFadden was expected to split time with Michael Bush, who missed the season opener with a thumb injury and is questionable to play against the Rams.
Other key injuries for the Raiders include left guard Robert Gallery (hamstring), defensive tackle Richard Seymour (hamstring), cornerback Chris Johnson (neck) and safety Hiram Eugene (hamstring). Gallery is listed as doubtful while Seymour, Johnson and Eugene are questionable. Even with the Raiders banged up we still like Oakland to cover the 3 points as our free nfl prediction. This line opened up at 6 and while there was some small value on the Rams at that number, at 3 all the value lies on Oakland at this point. You can get signed up for our Sunday plays which includes our 20 unit AFC East game of the year as well as 4 other solid winners and get other free plays on our free nfl picks page of the site. No one beats football like Maddux Sports does, dont delay in joining up with a winning service.
