Raiders' Betting Guide Ahead of 2022 NFL Season

The Las Vegas Raiders kicked off their preseason last Thursday in the Hall of Fame Game. While fans didn't get to see a ton of starters, they did have an early look at how the team is likely to operate under new head coach Josh McDaniels.

One interesting takeaway was McDaniels' heavy use of starting running back Josh Jacobs, who played the first two series, which is a lot for a starter in the Hall of Fame Game.

"I always think it's good for backs to carry the ball in the preseason," the Raiders coach said, per The Athletic's Tashan Reed.

McDaniels appears poised to bring the businesslike, balanced and physical offense he oversaw with the New England Patriots last season to Las Vegas. Will that, along with prized offseason additions Davante Adams and Chandler Jones, be enough to put the team in the championship mix?

The oddsmakers in Vegas certainly have their thoughts. Here, you'll find an overview of the latest odds and props along with some advice on how to wager in 2022. Add odds are from DraftKings Sportsbook.

The Raiders would love to contend for the Super Bowl in 2022. To do it, though, they're going to have to navigate a supremely talented AFC West.

Las Vegas wasn't the only team in the division to add notable pieces in the offseason. The Denver Broncos brought in quarterback Russell Wilson. The Los Angeles Chargers added standout defenders Khalil Mack and J.C. Jackson. The Kansas City Chiefs did trade star receiver Tyreek Hill, but they're defending champions and still have Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid running the offense.

Still, it's a bit of a surprise to see Las Vegas getting such long odds in the division. The Raiders are +650 (bet $100 to win $650), while the Broncos have the second-to-worst odds at +260.

The Chiefs and Chargers are at the top with +175 and +220 odds, respectively.

Winning the AFC West won't be easy, but the Raiders have as good a chance as anyone. The thing to remember here is that no team appears poised to run away with the division. Because teams play each divisional opponent twice, we may see them cut into each other's win totals—and it won't be a shock to see all four franchises finish above .500.

It's going to be a tight race in the West, and even if the Raiders aren't the most talented team from top to bottom, one or two lucky breaks could be enough to hand them the division. For that reason, the +650 odds are enticing.

The risk is substantial, but the potential reward outweighs it.

Wagering on Las Vegas winning the division makes sense because of the potential payout. Picking it to top 8.5 wins makes sense because it's an extremely low over/under for a team with this much talent.

Adams reunites with his college quarterback, Derek Carr, and that should give a significant boost to an offense that ranked 11th overall in 2021. If Jacobs can stay healthy—along with Kenyan Drake and rookie runner Zamir White—Las Vegas should feature an offense that is both potent and balanced.

Jones joins a defense that ranked 14th in yards allowed last season. While the Raiders are unlikely to completely shut down opposing offenses, they should do enough defensively to keep games close.

From there, Carr—who has 24 fourth-quarter comebacks and 30 game-winning drives on his resume, according to Pro Football Reference—will give the Raiders opportunities to win.

The biggest challenge for Las Vegas will be its difficult schedule. It is in a brutal division and is tied for the league's seventh-hardest schedule in terms of opposing 2021 winning percentage (.528).

Yet, a record of nine wins feels more than reasonable. The Raiders should be favored against the Seattle Seahawks, Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers. They'll only need to steal five wins out of their other 13 games to reach nine on the year.

This is a team that was less talented (on paper) and dealt with plenty of drama in 2021 but still managed to win 10 games. It would be a significant disappointment to see Las Vegas finish below .500 this year.

For fans who enjoy player prop bets, we have a couple of enticing options.

The first involves Adams, fellow wideout Hunter Renfrow and star tight end Darren Waller. DraftKings has +150 odds for the three to combine for 3,000 receiving yards. Assuming all three can remain healthy—Waller missed six games last season—this feels likely.

We might not see all three pass-catchers top 1,000 yards individually, but the potential is there. Waller had back-to-back 1,100-yard campaigns before last season, while Renfrow topped 1,000 yards in 2021.

Adams has topped 1,300 yards in three of the last four seasons. He had 997 yards in only 12 games in 2019. While he'll no longer be catching passes from Aaron Rodgers, he shouldn't experience a huge statistical drop-off with Carr under center.

These are the top three targets for the quarterback, who threw for 4,804 yards in 2021. Expect the trio to hit 3,000 receiving yards in 2022.

Our second favorable prop involves Carr and his chances of topping 450 passing yards in a single game. He's +300 to do so. Given Las Vegas' new-look receiving corps, this is entirely obtainable.

While the Fresno State product didn't top 450 yards in a game last season, he played much of the year without Waller and didn't have Adams. Las Vegas is likely to experience several shootouts in AFC West competition and there will be times when the Raiders have to throw to have a chance.

Carr has the talent and now has the talent around him to throw for 450-plus yards at least once in 2022.

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