Oakland Raiders at Buffalo Bills Pro Football Betting Preview & Predictions

Oakland Raiders at Buffalo Bills
Sunday, 9/18/11, 1:00 PM EST, TV: CBS
Opening Point Spread: Buffalo -4
Current Betting Line: Buffalo -4
Opening Total: 41
Current Total: 42
Odds Courtesy of Bookmaker

Oakland Raiders QB Jason Campbell will be handing the ball off a lot Sunday

Oakland is out on the road for the second consecutive week after tallying a 23-20 road win over the Denver Broncos as three-point underdogs on Monday Night Football. The Raiders will be aiming to start a campaign with a 2-0 record for the first time in nine years. “It would mean a ton to this football team,” commented Raiders head coach Hue Jackson. “We know we have to travel.” All the talk around the practice field leading up to this game is about the Buffalo Bills handing one of the team’s fiercest rivals a 41-7 loss inside Arrowhead Stadium. Oakland is 7-3 ATS as an underdog.

The Raiders will be putting together a patchwork wide receiving group this week, as Jacoby Ford and Louis Murphy are both expected to miss this contest. Oakland quarterback Jason Campbell will need Darrius Heyward-Bey to come up big, as he caught four passes for 44 yards a week ago. Campbell completed just 13 of 22 passes for 105 yards and a touchdown in last week’s win, as the team relied upon a power run game with Darren McFadden and Michael Bush. The duo combined for 31 carries and 180 yards.

Buffalo returns home 1-0 after its season-opening victory as 3.5-point road underdogs, out-gaining the Chiefs by 151 total yards. The Bills know they face a big challenge in the trenches this week, especially on the offensive end against the Raiders front and veteran Richard Seymour. “Up front, this is maybe the biggest, most physical team that we’ll see,” commented Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. Most of the focus in practice this week was spent on limiting McFadden’s ability to break the big run, as he led the league last year with 14 rushes of 20 or more yards. Buffalo is 3-0 ATS against AFC West competition.

The Bills did a tremendous job of shutting down the Chiefs offense last week on third down, allowing them to convert just 3 of 13 opportunities. This could be the key to the game, as the Raiders made good on just five of the 14 third downs in the Mile High City. Fitzpatrick definitely came out of the gate with a good start, as his 133 passer rating in Week 1 was a career high and also an NFL best for the first week of the regular season. Defensively, Buffalo knows that the two games to start the season is a definitive test, going against the two best rushing attacks from a season ago.