The Jim Harbaugh era in Los Angeles begins Week 1 with a divisional game between the Chargers and the Raiders. Here is how to bet on the game at DraftKings Sportsbook.
Raiders (+3) vs. Chargers o/u 40
Raiders Team Breakdown
Antonio Pierce took over for the Raiders as interim head coach last season. The team responded to him so positively that the Raiders hired him as the full-time head coach.
After Antonio Pierce took the job last season, the team went 7-1-1 ATS in their final nine games, the best of any team in the NFL over that stretch. Interim head coaches have had great runs before after providing a spark but have not been able to maintain it in the past, so Pierce needs to prove he is the real deal this season.
The Raiders will look different in the backfield without long-time running back Josh Jacobs. The Raiders will be rolling out a running back duo of Zamir White and Alexander Mattison this season which should be solid but not as consistent as Jacobs. At quarterback, the Raiders are starting Gardner Minshew in Week 1. There was some competition with Aidan O’Connell, who started a chunk of games last season, but the more experienced quarterback won out.
Minshew has been mostly the same quarterback his whole career. He can make some magical plays (hence Minshew Magic), but he can also make some bad mistakes at times. His ceiling is limited, but he has a pretty high floor, and can lead a good roster to a playoff berth if things go according to plan.
The Raiders made a great move in adding Christian Wilkins to the interior of their defensive line this offseason. Together with Maxx Crosby, they will be a really hard tandem to block. The entire front seven should be solid for the Raiders, but the secondary has some holes. They are really young in the secondary and nobody has really emerged as the leader of the group.
Chargers Team Breakdown
Jim Harbaugh has won everywhere he goes. He took the 49ers to a Super Bowl and just won a national championship with Michigan last season. This season he has the task of taking this Chargers team to the next level. QB Justin Herbert is continuously touted as the next big thing, but the results in the win-loss column are not where they should be for an elite quarterback. Harbaugh needs to get this team to the postseason and win in the postseason for his tenure to be considered a success.
The Chargers drafted LT Joe Alt, who was arguably the most talented player in the entire draft. They also drafted WR Ladd McConkey in the second round. McConkey joins Joshua Palmer and DJ Chark in a very mediocre wide receiving corps. All three players have the potential to be solid options but none of them are good enough to be WR1 for a playoff team. At running back, Austin Ekeler is off to Washington, and the Chargers will be going with the old Ravens backfield of JK Dobbins and Gus Edwards.
The Chargers should be much better coached than they have been over the past few seasons. In addition to Harbaugh, the Chargers hired Jesse Minter, who was Harbaugh’s defensive coordinator at Michigan, to be their new defensive coordinator. They also brought in former Ravens offensive coordinator Greg Roman to partner up with his old running backs again. This team should have a much more run-heavy approach than the Chargers teams of old.
Pick and Prediction
The Chargers’ defense should give the Raiders’ offense a hard time. Jesse Minter is a very good and very aggressive defensive coordinator. He will bring heavy blitzes non-stop, which has given Gardner Minshew major problems in the past. Offensively, the Chargers should be able to run the ball effectively and grind out sustained drives.
Overall, this should be a pretty low-scoring game. Both teams should play it pretty conservatively as one big mistake could lose you this game. The game should also stay close enough that neither team has to go ultra-aggressive. That is why my best bet for this game is on the Minshew passing yards under. He should be rattled by the blitz and struggle to find open receivers. The Chargers have the personnel to take away Davante Adams and make things hard on Minshew.
Best Bet: Gardner Minshew u220.5 passing yards
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