Las Vegas Raiders vs. Carolina Panthers Odds & Game Pick (2020)
It’s been a strange and long seven-plus month journey since we saw the last snap of NFL football played. Despite not playing a single snap of the preseason and conducting NFL training camps that saw limited tackling and live-playing, the NFL will march on this week to carry out week one mostly as normal. While the restrictions and lack of fans are anyone’s guess as to what the onfield product will look like initially, football will be played and we’ll be there all season to find the edges week and week out.
Let’s take a look at one week one matchup I have my eye on.
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
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Details
- Opening Lines: Panthers -1.5; O/U 45.5
- Current Line: Raiders -3
- O/U: 47.5
- Location: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
- Start Time: 1:05 pm ET
- Television: CBS
- Last Meeting: November 27, 2016 – Carolina 32, Oakland 35
View consensus picks from experts for the Raiders at Panthers >>
Overview
The Matt Rhule era will officially get underway Sunday afternoon in Carolina as the first-time NFL head coach will be alongside first-time offensive coordinator Joe Brady in what could be a very interesting start to the season. With Cam Newton now completely out of the picture as well, the Panthers will hand the offense to Teddy Bridgewater who along with All-Pro Christian McCaffery will help re-define a new era in Carolina.
In this year’s draft, the Panthers became the first team since the AFL-NFL merged to use all seven draft picks on the defensive side of the ball, many of which will see the field almost right away. With that in mind, the idea of Rhule getting these guys ready for Week 1 NFL competition with a rushed camp and no preseason games seems like a low percentage proposition.
The long-awaited move to Las Vegas has officially come and gone for the Raiders, as they’ve officially made the jump and will play this season home games in their new hometown. For third-year head coach Jon Gruden, the pressure is officially on after two rocky campaigns to find the win column early and often.
Gruden’s success will likely ride and die with the production of quarterback David Carr, whose revamped wide receiver core has Raiders fans optimistic he can return to form. The running game for the Raiders, however, is what has me optimistic this offense can improve, as a bolstered line should take the second year running back Josh Jacobs well past 1,000 yards once again.
- The Raiders are 0-3-1 ATS in their last four games as a road favorite
- The Over is 5-1 in the Panthers last six home games
- The Over is 5-2 in the Panthers last seven games as a home underdog
Prop Bet
The retirement of LB Luke Kuechly in the middle of what many considered his prime was an absolute killer for this Panthers defense. With as many young and new to Carolina players as this defense will have, I like the experienced Gruden and Carr combo do have their way early and often.
Bottom Line
While Rhule and Brady dominated the college game, they were facing an uphill battle in this league even if they were to get a full offseason and preseason. Without one, success early feels almost impossible. Though I don’t expect the Raiders to turn many heads this season against normal NFL competition, I think they take advantage of what should be a largely lost Panthers team. With no preseason to further form chemistry, I don’t see this Panthers team finding the endzone much in this one.
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TJ Perun is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from TJ, check out his archive and follow him @JohnnyCovers.