Week 2 NFL Picks: Jacksonville Jaguars at Oakland Raiders

Jacksonville at Oakland
Time: 4:25 PM EST, Sunday Sept 15
Line: OAK -5
M/L: OAK -240, JAX +200
O/U: 39

Odds courtesy of 5dimes

The Jacksonville Jaguars were nearly shut out in week one, losing 28-2 to Kansas City, and they’ll find themselves underdogs again in week two against the Oakland Raiders, as NFL oddsmakers at 5dimes set the five points in favor of the home team Raiders.

Nothing went well in the loss to KC. The Jaguars managed just 178 total yards, which places them dead last in pass offense and 21st in rushing offense. The defense allowed 292 yards and 31:30 of possession. The Jaguars will have to play far better on both sides of the ball to even compete with an Oakland team that is rebuilding itself.

The Jags do suffer a serious lack of talent. Their premier player Maurice Jones-Drew is past his short lived prime, and he struggled in week one, averaging just 3.0 yards per carry on 15 attempts. Jones-Drew will not revamp to 2008 form on one magic week, nor will Blane Gabbert resemble a franchise quarterback.

Jacksonville is still trying to build from the draft, and even the Oakland Raiders stand a step ahead with a premier back still on the upswing in Darren McFadden and Terrelle Pryor, who had an impressive first start, throwing 19-of-29 for 217 yards. He had two interceptions to his one touchdown, but combined with his 112 rushing yards, the game had to be viewed as a success for Pryor.

Oakland lost 21-17 to Indianapolis, but that is a quality loss to a good opponent, and if Oakland continually displays a great dual threat offense as they did against the Colts, the team could be far more improved than last season’s four win campaign. The game should be low scoring, mostly due to the fact that the Jaguars won’t produce as much offense due to lack of firepower.