NFL WEEK 11 BEST BETS: MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
Summary
The Dallas Cowboys face the Las Vegas Raiders with the Raiders holding a narrow 7-6 lead in their all-time series. Their last meeting in 2021 was a 36-33 overtime victory for Las Vegas. Dallas is coming off a bye week following a loss to the Arizona Cardinals, while the Raiders also had a bye after a 10-7 defeat to the Denver Broncos, their third consecutive loss.
The prediction is for a 31-23 Cowboys victory, meaning Dallas is expected to cover the 3.5-point spread and the total points will go over 49.5. Several player props are highlighted, including Dak Prescott throwing for over 283.5 yards and two touchdowns, and the Raiders’ Geno Smith surpassing 183.5 passing yards. A parlay combining these and other individual bets offers a potential payout at +1800.
DALLAS COWBOYS AT LAS VEGAS RAIDERS (+3.5, O/U: 49.5)
THE HISTORY
In spite of both these teams being around since before disco music was a thing, this will just be the 14th all time meeting between the two franchises. The Raiders, if you can believe it, have the advantage in the series, 7-6. Dallas has a chance to even it up Monday night. They last met on Nov. 25, 2021, with Vegas taking it 36-33 in overtime. Derek Carr was 24 of 39 for 373 yards, one touchdown and no picks in the win. Josh Jacobs, now with the Green Bay Packers, rushed 22 times for 87 yards and a score. Hunter Renfrow, now with the Carolina Panthers in some capacity, caught eight passes for 134 yards. DeSean Jackson had three grabs for 102 yards. For the Cowboys, Dak Prescott was 23 of 47 for 375 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. Cedric Wilson, now with the Miami Dolphins, caught seven passes for 104 yards. Michael Gallup had five receptions for 106 yards.
DALLAS COWBOYS (3-5-1)
Dallas had the week off on a bye, nursing their wounds after falling 27-17 to a previously hapless Arizona Cardinals team that went right back to sucking the very next week. Prescott was 24 of 39 for 250 yards, one TD and an interception in the loss. He added 34 yards on the ground and was sacked five times. Javonte Williams had 15 carries for 83 yards. CeeDee Lamb caught seven balls for 85 yards. George Pickens had six receptions for 79 yards.
LAS VEGAS RAIDERS (2-7)
The Raiders continued their downward spiral, losing their third game in a row two weeks ago, 10-7 to the Denver Broncos. And, yes, pathetic winning scores like that are nothing new for the Broncos, but still, shame on Vegas for that. They too had a bye last week to think about what they’ve done. In the Denver loss, Geno Smith was 16 of 26 for 143 yards, no touchdowns and a pick. He was sacked six times before being replaced by Kenny “Teensy Paws” Pickett, who went a very Geno Smith like 0 for 1. Ashton Jeanty rushed 19 times for 60 yards and a score. Tyler Lockett had five catches for 44 yards.
BEST BETS
Hey, nobody asked to watch these two garbage teams in prime time and, frankly, you have to put the blame squarely on the NFL schedulers. The fact that the Cowboys are competitive at all has been a shocker as Brian Schottenheimer looked like the worst coaching hire of the offseason. It turns out that dishonor might belong to Las Vegas’ Pete Carroll, who looks every bit as old coaching as his 74 years. At that age the man shouldn’t be coaching an NFL team. He should obviously be running for President of the United States.
In this week’s Friday Afternoon Quarterback I picked the Cowboys to win this one 31-23 and I’m sticking with that which means Dallas covers and we hit the over.
On the Cowboys’ side, I like Dak Prescott to throw for more than 283.5 passing yards, toss two touchdowns, Javonte Williams to score a TD, George Pickens to go over 60.5 receiving yards and CeeDee Lamb to go over 77.5 receiving yards. That pays off at +650.
For the Raiders, it’s a safe bet that Geno Smith will surpass 183.5 passing yards, Brock Bowers will go over 61.5 receiving yards and Ashton Jeanty will rush for more than 58.5 yards and score a touchdown. That’ll pay you at +350.
And if you put all those together — and it looks like a solid bet to me — you’ll collect at a cool +1800.
Follow Adam Greene on Blue Sky @AdamGreene13, Threads @adam.greene and Twitter @TheFirstMan
