The Oakland Raiders are coming off an incredible victory in Week 1, and on Sunday, they will welcome the Atlanta Falcons to the O.co Coliseum.
There should be plenty of offense on display on Sunday when the Atlanta Falcons travel to Oakland to face the upstart Raiders. Both teams have the ability to score points in bunches, as they each have incredible play-makers on the offensive side of the ball. Whoever can put a few stops together should be able to win, and the Raiders defense will be up to the task.
Last week, the Raiders went down to New Orleans to play the Saints. After trailing for most of the game, Oakland ran off 22 points in the fourth quarter, winning the game on an incredibly gutsy call by head coach Jack Del Rio. After quarterback Derek Carr hit Seth Roberts for a 10-yard touchdown with 0:47 seconds left, the team had the choice to kick and tie, or go for two and the win. Del Rio went for two, as Carr hit Michael Crabtree for the conversion, putting Oakland up 35-34.
Saints quarterback Drew Brees led his team down the field to set up a 61-yard field goal by Wil Lutz, but the kick sailed wide-left, sending Oakland to a 1-0 record.
Atlanta will be looking for their first win of the season, after losing to the Jameis Winston-led Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 1. The second-year quarterback threw for four touchdowns, hitting four different receivers, and the team hung on for a 31-24 road win. The Falcons got a great performance from quarterback Matt Ryan, who racked up 334 yards in the air, while tossing two scores.
If the Falcons want to get into the win column, they are going to have to run the ball against the Raiders. Star running back Devonta Freeman did nothing against the Bucs, making Atlanta one-dimensional. The Raiders have a nice young defense that is still coming together, but should be able to rebound from a shoddy effort against the Saints high-octane offense.
Odds
Line: OAK (-4.5)
Over/Under: 49
This game should definitely go over the 49 point over/under spread, as both Carr and Ryan are great at moving their team down the field. The biggest difference is that the Raiders also have play-makers on defense, as Khalil Mack and Reggie Nelson are both two of the best at their positions. The combination of Ryan and Julio Jones is going to create matchup problems in the Raiders secondary, but cornerback Sean Smith should rebound from a bad effort in Week 1.
Related Story: 10 craziest NFL fan bases
The Raiders move to 2-0 on the young season, winning what possibly could be their final home opener at O.co Coliseum. Atlanta is going to struggle this season, and they are going into Oakland to play a team that is flying high after Week 1. Oakland is developing a never say die attitude, and Atlanta just does not have the players on defense to stop the Raiders offense.
Prediction: Oakland 31 Falcons 27