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NFL Week 15 Picks: Denver Broncos vs Oakland Raiders Betting Odds

by Scott Burgess on Sunday, December 19th, 2010

The Denver Broncos host the Oakland Raiders, Sunday Dec 19, as the Raiders desperately need a win to catch up to the Chiefs and Chargers in the AFC West. Denver allowed 59 points, at home, to the Raiders in Week 7. NFL oddsmakers have the Steelers as -6 point home favorites over the Jets while the game's total has been posted at 35.5 points. Be sure to get the latest NFL Point Spreads for your NFL Week 15 Picks on the Denver Broncos vs Oakland Raiders Betting Odds.

The Broncos (3-10) (1-6 V) lost in Arizona 13-43, in Week 14, and will miss the playoffs. QB Kyle Orton completed 19 of 41 passes for 166 yards with no TD’s and three interceptions. RB Knowshon Moreno had 19 carries for 81 yards with a TD, while WR Jabar Gaffney made three catches for 48 yards. Their defense got no sacks and no interceptions. Kyle Orton says he's sore but not injured. "I don't have a dead arm," Orton insisted Wednesday when asked about his poor play the past two weeks. "I was throwing the ball 70 yards last week in practice, so my arm's feeling fine." It is somewhat intriguing as to what it might actually take to get backup QB Tim Tebow on field with any regularity. In the first 11 weeks, Orton averaged 306 passing yards. Over the last two, he averaged just 141. Orton already has been sacked a career-high 34 times, and it shows. "It's been tough. It's been a tough season," Orton said. "I would imagine for everybody in the locker room, it's been a tough season. You know, unless we start playing better, these three weeks are going to be tough. So I'd love to go out and play well and finish the season on a positive note." The Broncos' front seven should have major issues with the Raiders' two-pronged run attack. The Broncos offense is ranked 10th overall (352ypg) with the NFL’s fifth best ranked pass game (262ypg) and a 29th ranked running game (89ypg). They score the 19th least amount of points per-game (20.7ppg). Brandon Lloyd leads their offense with nine TD’s. The Broncos battle the Raiders 14th ranked defense (335ypg), the NFL’s seventh best ranked pass rush (202ypg), and their 26th ranked rush defense (132ypg). The Raiders give up the 19th most amount of points per-game (23.6ppg).

The Raiders (6-7) (4-2 H) lost in Jacksonville 31-38, in Week 14, and sit two back from top seed KC and one back from San Diego. QB Jason Campbell made 21 of 30 passes for 324 yards with two TD’s and no rushing TD. RB Darren McFadden had 16 carries for 123 yards with two TD’s and he was top receiver with three catches for 86 yards with a TD. Louis Murphy made six catches for 59 yards with a TD. Their defense had two sacks and one interception. Oakland likely needs to win its final three games and get help from Kansas City and San Diego in order to make the playoffs. The Broncos seem to be the perfect opponent to do it against, having lost 18 of 23 games since starting last season 6-0 under former coach Josh McDaniels. The Raiders will likely utilize their two way running game against the Broncos struggling defense. The Raiders are third in the NFL with 38 sacks and Darren McFadden ranks second in the NFL with 130 yards from scrimmage per game. The Raiders offense is ranked 14th overall (349ypg) with an 24th ranked pass game (199ypg) and the NFL’s third best ranked running game (149ypg). They score the 10th most amount of points per-game (24.2ppg). RB Darren McFadden leads their offense with 10 TD’s. The Raiders face the Broncos 28th ranked defense (377ypg), their 19th ranked pass rush (226ypg) and their 31st ranked rush defense (150ypg). The Broncos give up the most amount of points per-game (28.9ppg).

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