Raiders at Saints: Odds, trends, and more
By John Buhler
The New Orleans Saints will host the Oakland Raiders in Week 1 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Here are the odds and trends to keep in mind for this game.
The New Orleans Saints will welcome the Oakland Raiders to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for an exciting Week 1 matchup in the Big Easy on Sunday, September 11th at 1:00 PM ET. New Orleans is very much in the mix for an NFC Wild Card spot. Oakland is looking for its first AFC Playoffs berth since 2002.
OddsShark.com has the Saints as a slight one-point home favorite over the Raiders in this one. The money line has New Orleans at -120 and Oakland at +100. This game’s over/under is at 51 points.
Though a one-point spread would normally make one run to the hills, Oakland might actually be the team. It is wise to take any points Las Vegas gives the Raiders in this one, especially if one thinks Oakland will upset New Orleans on the road.
As for the over/under, that really all depends on if one thinks this game is going to be a shootout or a low-scoring affair. The Saints are better equipped to win a shootout than Oakland, so it might make sense to take the over if one likes New Orleans to win at home.
However, Oakland does have the better defense over New Orleans. If a low-scoring affair is in order, it makes sense to parlay the under with Oakland getting the points.
With regards to some of the trends entering this game, the Saints have won the last three meetings over the Raiders. New Orleans has scored at least 31 points on the Raiders the last three games. The Saints’ last loss to the Raiders came at home on November 19th, 2000, 31-22.
Next: 2016 NFL season: Record predictions for all 32 teams
The Saints have lost their last two season openers, but that’s not as bad as the Raiders. Oakland has lost its last four season openers. Its last Week 1 victory came at Mile High Field against the Denver Broncos on September 12th, 2011, 23-20. 2011 was the best season for the Raiders since 2002, as Oakland finished .500 at 8-8, winning all six of its AFC West games.