#3 The storylines
Believe it or not, a lot is riding on this Las Vegas Raiders versus the Baltimore Ravens game. For the Raiders, the focus will be on their defense and how it fairs against Lamar Jackson. In fact, Trevon Moehring, Alex Leatherwood, and DJ Wright will all have to come up big against one of the best offenses in the league.
As for the Raiders offense, there are a lot of questions to answer on that end too.
For example, does Derek Carr finally have the weapons he needs to move the ball down the field? How will Darren Wallner and Foster Moreau do at the tight end position? Finally, what will happen with the Raiders' white-hot running game, which includes Joshua Jacobs and Kenyan Drake? Can they give the offense the charge it needs? Who knows, but it will be interesting to watch these two teams play.
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#2 Predictions
While some are probably expecting the Ravens to come away with the victory, there is an argument to be made for the Las Vegas Raiders to grab a shock win at Allegiant stadium. In fact, between the Ravens lacking J.K Dobbins and Lamar Jackson being more likely to go for the run to fill that void, maybe the Raiders can score in Week 1.
Below are a few other predictions from around the sports league.
According to Kyle Koster and Liam Mckeone, "This is the year Jon Gruden’s whole schtick has to start working. And it will. In Week 1, at least. A diverse and talented offense will chop up the Baltimore defense that always takes a little time to get going under John Harbaugh while the defense will do enough to limit Lamar Jackson’s abilities. . In what will surely be a rocking stadium for the Las Vegas football debut with fans, the Raiders will not disappoint."
However, according to Pete Fiutak of collegefooballnews.com, "Las Vegas has tried to build itself into a tough, hard-nosed team under Jon Gruden, but with the flash of the downfield passing game that makes the Raiders the Raiders. However, the offensive line is building itself back up to try getting more physical for a ground game that died for a long stretch over the second half of the season.
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#1 The odds
Let's get to the skinny of the matter and discuss the opening lines for the game between the Las Vegas Raiders and the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens are listed as the favorites at -210, while the Raiders are +170. The Ravens are also the -4.5 favorites to win the game, but there might be some reason to bet against the Ravens. In fact, between JK Dobbins being out and Lamar Jackson likely carrying much of the running game in his absence, it could be the Raiders with a surprise victory.
It's all going to come down to three things. The first is the Raiders' defense, and they need to be able to stop their opponents from scoring. Secondly, Derek Carr needs to show up in the passing game. He also needs to find a few reliable weapons to work with. Finally, there's the running game, and it's all going to come down to what the combination of Joshua Jacobs and Kenyan Drake can do.
It should be an interesting game.
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