The Miami Dolphins will travel to Allegiant Stadium to take on the Las Vegas Raiders this Sunday afternoon in NFL action.
The Miami Dolphins dropped to 1-1 on the season after being defeated by the Buffalo Bills, 35-0, this past Sunday. Miami had no answers on either side of the ball against Buffalo and could not fight back after an 8-yard TD reception by the Bills Dawson Knox gave Buffalo a 21-0 lead early in the 3rd quarter. Miami was outgained by Buffalo by a 314-216 margin and committed 3 turnovers in the loss. Leading the way for the Dolphins was QB Jacoby Brissett who completed 24 of 40 passes for 169 yards & 1 INT.
On the season, Miami is averaging 8.5 ppg on 264.5 total yards per game (192.0 passing yds/g; 72.5 rushing yds/g). Miami lost QB Tua Tagovailoa early against the Bills and will be out for a few weeks with broken ribs. Replacing Tagovailoa will be Jacoby Birssett. The top receiving threats for the Dolphins have been DeVante Parker (9 rec, 123 yards), Jaylen Waddle (10 rec, 109 yards, TD), & Mike Gesicki (3 rec, 41 yards). Leading the way for the Dolphins backfield has been the trio of Myles Gaskin (14 att, 74 yards), Malcolm Brown (10 att, 37 yards), & Salvon Ahmed (9 att, 21 yards).
Defensively, Miami is allowing their opponents to average 25.5 ppg on 364.0 total yards per game (230.0 passing yds/g; 134.0 rushing yds/g).
The Las Vegas Raiders improved to 2-0 on the season after defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers, 26-17, this past Sunday. Las Vegas was outstanding on the defensive end against the Steelers and was able to pull away early in the 4th quarter after a 61-yard TD reception by Henry Ruggs III gave the Raiders a 23-14 lead with 9:35 left in regulation. Las Vegas outgained Pittsburgh by a 425-331 margin and won the turnover battle by a 1-0 margin in the victory. Leading the way for the Raiders was QB Derek Carr who completed 28 of 37 passes for 382 yards & 2 TD’s.
On the season, Las Vegas is averaging 29.5 ppg on 475.5 total yards per game (408.5 passing yds/g; 67.0 rushing yds/g). Offensively, Las Vegas has been led by QB Derek Carr who has completed 66.7% of his passes for 817 yards, 4 TD, & 1 INT. The top receiving threats for the Raiders have been Darren Waller (15 rec, 170 yards, TD), Henry Ruggs III (7 rec, 159 yards, TD), & Hunter Renfrow (11 rec, 127 yards). Leading the way for the Raiders backfield is the duo of Josh Jacobs (10 att, 34 yards) & Kenyan Drake (13 att, 20 yards; 10 rec, 105 yards). Josh Jacobs missed last game due to an injury and is currently questionable for this matchup.
Defensively, Las Vegas is allowing their opponents to average 22.0 ppg on 379.0 total yards per game (265.0 passing yds/g; 114.0 rushing yds/g).
The Dolphins are 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games following a straight up loss, however, are just 3-7 ATS in their last 10 September games. The Raiders are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 September games and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games following a straight up win.
Miami is a decent team, however, it’s concerning how their offense last week could not get anything going against the Bills defense. Las Vegas has gotten off to a great start to their season and as Derek Carr and the Raiders passing attack should be able to put up plenty of points against a Miami defense that was just dominated by Josh Allen and the Bills, I think the Raiders do enough to cover this small home spread. Good Luck!
AUTHOR: Brett Nault
