SNF: Ravens vs Bills Predictions

[SBR Andy]

It's a showdown of AFC powerhouses on Sunday Night Football in Week 1 as the Bills host the Ravens.

Can Baltimore avenge their 27-25 loss in the Divisional round of the playoffs last year or will Buffalo get the upper hand again?

Post your SNF predictions below!

[SBR Andy]

SBR's Mike Spector breaks down the Sunday Night Football action in his Ravens vs Bills prediction:

Ravens -1 (-105 BetMGM)

"It likely took a lot of support from both the public and sharps to move this line enough to make the top Super Bowl odds contenders a home underdog in Week 1. But even though Josh Allen is 3-2 in his career against Lamar Jackson, the latter has won two of the three regular-season meetings. That has me backing Baltimore’s low point spread as my best Ravens vs. Bills prediction.

The Ravens are the most balanced squad in the league. Baltimore is coming off a season when it was the first team in the Super Bowl era with 30-plus passing touchdowns and 30-plus rushing touchdowns.

Baltimore’s improvements defensively toward the end of last season have led to me backing the team confidently this week. The Ravens led the NFL in defensive efficiency over the final eight weeks of the regular season, allowing an NFL-low 15.4 points per game and 4.4 yards per play. Baltimore also fielded a stout run defense all campaign, allowing an NFL-low 3.6 yards per rush.

The Ravens may be the only club leaguewide that can make Buffalo truly one-dimensional. They've also put together perhaps the only defense that can consistently pressure the reigning MVP. Allen was sacked the fewest times (14) among quarterbacks who made at least 12 starts last year, but Baltimore’s 54 sacks were the second-most in the NFL."


Mark Andrews to score a touchdown (+175 DraftKings)

"Mark Andrews was unfairly labeled as the scapegoat after the Ravens lost their divisional-round matchup to the Bills last season when he dropped the potential game-tying two-point conversion attempt late. But there's a lot of data supporting my best Ravens vs. Bills player prop bet that he'll pick himself up and find the end zone in this rematch.

Andrews has recorded 55-plus receptions in each of his four career seasons when the tight end has played 11-plus games. Baltimore also owned the fifth-highest target rate to tight ends last season.

The Ravens enjoyed a lot of success targeting tight ends in the red zone last year. The resulting 17 touchdown receptions led the league, and were eight more than the next-closest team. Baltimore’s tight ends also ranked second in red-zone receptions (22) and red-zone targets (29)."