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Raiders, Eagles meet in Philly Monday night
By: Staff Writer - StatFox
Published: 12/20/2017  at  6:01:00 PM
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OAKLAND RAIDERS (6-8)
at PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (12-2)

Lincoln Financial Field – Philadelphia, PA
Kickoff: Monday, 8:25 p.m. ET
Line: Philadelphia -9.0, Total: 47.5

The Eagles will be looking to clinch home-field advantage in the NFC with a Monday night win over the Raiders.

The Raiders are coming off of a brutal loss to the Cowboys last week, as Oakland fumbled the game away on its final possession. The team was driving for the win and that victory would have given them a shot of staying in the AFC postseason picture, but the Raiders are done now. Still, this team will be playing hard on Monday and it’s not going to be easy for the Eagles to win. Philadelphia lost star QB Carson Wentz (Knee) to an injury, but the team was still able to earn the win against New York last week. The Eagles won that game 34-29, so they clearly had no trouble putting up points. One trend that favors the Raiders in this game is the fact that they are 22-9 ATS in road games after losses by six or fewer points since 1992. They tend to bounce back after close games, but the fact that they are just 6-8 could have an opposite effect on that. Philadelphia, meanwhile, is 8-0 ATS off two or more consecutive Overs in the past two seasons. The Eagles are also 7-0 ATS in home games after one or more consecutive wins in that span.

The Raiders might not be feeling great about their loss to the Cowboys last week, but an 8-8 finish would certainly make these players a lot happier than a potential 6-10 one. QB Derek Carr is the guy that was really responsible for Oakland’s loss last week, as he made a boneheaded play to fumble the ball inside the Dallas five-yard line. He is, however, the leader of this team and knows that he can’t let any negative emotions linger on too long. Look for him to come right back out and attempt to put it behind him. Carr has had a bit of a down year, but he is a talented quarterback and it would not be surprising if he were to put up some big numbers in this game. One person he’ll be targeting often in this game is WR Michael Crabtree. With WR Amari Cooper banged up, Crabtree is really the only guy that Oakland can rely on there. That is why the team might be more likely to just do its best to establish the run in this game. RB Marshawn Lynch has looked better in recent weeks, so he might be able to find some holes in this game. Defensively, the Raiders need to get pressure on Nick Foles. He just took over for Carson Wentz, so he’s still not going to be 100% comfortable under center.

QB Nick Foles had a good opportunity to knock off some rust in a start against the lowly Giants, and he truly looked great in that game. Foles went 24-for-38 for 237 yards, four touchdowns and no picks in that win over New York. Foles isn’t going to put up the same types of outrageous numbers that Wentz did, but the Eagles will be happy as long as he is limiting his mistakes and moving the ball. He did appear to have a connection with most of the Eagles’ receivers last week. He threw touchdowns to TE Zach Ertz, WR Nelson Agholor, TE Trey Burton and WR Alshon Jeffery against New York. If he can continue to spread the ball around then it will not be easy for opposing teams to guard this offense. Philadelphia would still be wise to start getting RB Jay Ajayi more touches. Ajayi was a dynamic back in Miami, but he doesn’t seem like he is comfortable in the Eagles’ offense just yet. With Wentz no longer on the field, the team should be doing its best to change that. Philly might need to run more in the playoffs, so the team must get Ajayi going.


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