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BetUS NFL betting odds: Denver -1

NOTABLE STAT: Denver and Oakland were 30th and 31st against the run, respectively, in 2007

KEY NFL FOOTBALL BETTING TREND: Oakland is 2-9 ATS in its last 11 at home

(For more useful stats and trends, visit our special Matchup Tool)

A couple of AFC West teams who are trying to reverse some recent disappointments will get together in the nightcap of an opening weekend Monday doubleheader, when the Oakland Raiders (4-12 SU, 6-10 ATS in 2007) in an NFL game that is scheduled to start at 10:15 PM ET at McAfee Coliseum in Oakland.

In the BetUS NFL football betting odds, the Broncos are a one-point road favorite.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this football gambling matchup:

* DEN has lost nine of its last 14 games SU

* DEN has covered six of its last 24 games

* DEN has played 15 of its last 21 games OVER the total

* DEN has played five of its last seven road games OVER the total

* OAK has lost ten of its last 12 games SU

* OAK has covered three of its last nine games

* OAK has played six of its last seven games OVER the total

* OAK has lost five of its last six home games SU

* OAK has covered two of its last eleven home games

* DEN has won eight of the last 10 meetings SU

* DEN has won 15 of the last 20 meetings SU

* OAK has covered the last four meetings

* DEN has won four of the last five meetings SU as the road team

* Four of the last six meetings in Oakland have gone UNDER the total

Anyone NFL odds enthusiast who follows the NFL understands that there is probably no team Mike Shanahan likes to defeat more than the Oakland Raiders. Obviously part of that is the way the team fired him from his position of head coach back in 1989. But Shanahan, who has won 15 of the last 20 games against his former team, has failed to cover the last four against the Raiders. And off a very tough 7-9 season, he comes into this year's slate with less talent at the running back and wide receiver spots than he had before, a quarterback (Jay Cutler) who was diagnosed with diabetes in the off-season, and without the assistant coach (Alex Gibbs) who is widely credited with making the Broncos' vaunted run attack go for all these years. Denver also gave up more yards on the ground last year than all but two NFL teams.

Fortunately for them, I guess, one of those teams was the Oakland Raiders, who played better last year, but not good enough under their first-year coach, Lane Kiffin. The team brought along rookie quarterback JaMarcus Russell VERY slowly, despite the fact that it was going nowhere, and in four games Russell completed 54.5% of his passes with four interceptions in 66 attempts. Certainly we have to afford Cutler an edge at this position, but with Travis Henry having been released, and Shanahan still looking for real answers in the backfield, we wonder whether the Broncos aren't patching things up just as much, if not for than the Raiders.

As long as Denver has problems stopping the run, Oakland may be able to do what it does best, which is to pound it. And this season they add a new attraction in Darren McFadden, who may just come in with a bang. Between McFadden and Justin Fargas, they may be able to take a lot of pressure off Russell, who will now have a full training camp behind him, early on. And with Nnamdi Asomugha and D'Angelo Hall teaming at the corners, Oakland should be able to handle Denver's non-threatening wideouts, allowing for help elsewhere.

I'm not sure I expect great things from Oakland this year, but in this situation Shanahan still has a lot of things that are unanswered. There won't be a blowout either way, but a Sebastian Janikowski field goal late in the game makes the difference. McFadden's impact will not be minimal. I like the Raiders, the one-point underdog in the BetUS NFL betting odds.

JAY'S PLAY: OAKLAND (+1) **

(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

The 2008 Super Bowl XLII and beyond!

(Charles Jay of www.ebookies.com is a member of the NFL too - that is, "not for long" if you don't get results. He is now a regular contributor to the BetUS.com Locker Room)