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Jeremy Perry
49ers vs. Raiders Point Spread: NFL Week 17 Odds, Prediction
The chief storyline of this matchup is the Raiders decision to bench quarterback Derek Carr and give Jarrett Stidham the start. San Francisco has won eight straight games following their 4-4 start to the season and has the No. 1 defense in the NFL. Is this the right time to make the move?
NFL Point Spread and Betting Analysis
The 49ers are 4-1 ATS in their last five games played on the road and 20-7 ATS in their last 27 games played overall. They are also 17-4 ATS in their last 21 games played during the month of January. As for the total, the over has cashed in six of their last seven road games against a team with a losing home record on the year.
As for the Raiders, they have covered five straight against teams with a winning record and 4-1 ATS in their last five games played at home against a team with a winning road record. As for the total, the over has cashed in four of their last five against teams with a winning record.
San Francisco 49ers
The quarterback change from Jimmy Garoppolo to Brock Purdy hasn’t been as major as it first looked. In fact, Purdy appears to be putting himself in a position to compete for the starting job moving forward with the way that he’s playing. San Francisco has scored over 30 points in three out of their four games with Purdy playing.
It’s safe to say that the 49ers are amongst the best defenses in the league. Statistically, they rank No. 1 in the NFL in yards allowed per game. They’ve held their opponents under 20 points in seven out of their last eight games. That one game they didn’t was last week against the Washington Commanders when they allowed exactly 20 points. Now they get a disheveled Raiders team that’s switching from Carr to Stidham, for some reason. Las Vegas is crumbling and as long as the 49ers defense is focused, they’ll win their ninth in a row.
Las Vegas Raiders
There are not many positives to pull out from the Raiders this season. They were expected to contend for the division title with the Kansas City Chiefs and now rest five games below them in the AFC West standings. Their offense consistently sputters out in the second half, there have been questions regarding the future of Derek Carr as quarterback, the future of Josh McDaniels as the head coach, and questions about how good their defense really is. After all, it’s not worth paying all of this talent if they continue to be a sub-.500 team.
With Carr benched, Josh Jacobs will have to carry the load. He leads the NFL in rushing yards. However, it’s unclear what happens with the rest of the offense – especially Davante Adams. The star wideout came over to Las Vegas to play with Carr, so he’s probably not thrilled to see this move. McDaniels is looking for a spark but this could backfire.
SF
LV