The Denver Broncos will be trying to end a three-game losing streak against the spread when they battle the undefeated New England Patriots on Sunday Night Football as 3-point betting underdogs at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
The Broncos return home after posting a 17-15 win in Chicago last weekend, eking out the victory on the strength of some poor play calling by the Bears. Chicago chose to forego a field goal attempt in a fourth-and-goal situation in the second half only to come up short on a play that would prove to be the difference in the game.
While the win ended their two-game straight up losing streak, Denver once again failed to cover the spread, this time as 2.5-point chalk. Denver enters Sunday night’s Patriots vs. Broncos betting matchup at Sports Authority Field with just two ATS wins in their past seven outings.
Points have been hard to come by for the Broncos, who have scored an average of 18 per game over their last three games after averaging almost 25 points per game in their previous three.
With Peyton Manning sidelined with a foot injury, the task of re-igniting the Denver offense has fallen to Brock Osweiler, who will make his second NFL career start under center for the Broncos in Sunday’s contest.
Ostweiler performed admirably in last week’s win over the Bears, but it’s their defense that played a larger role in getting the Broncos to their current 8-2 record. The group has held opposing passers to under 300 yards in each of their last five.
Denver’s pass defense will be kept busy on Sunday night trying to contain Tom Brady. The New England quarterback is averaging an NFL-leading 332 passing yards per game and surpassed 300 yards in three of his four road performances this season.
While Brady continues to drive the offense, the Patriots’ defense quietly surpassed the Broncos as tops in the NFL, holding opponents to 17 or fewer points in five of their last eight games.
However, the 10-0 Patriots have surrendered 26 or more points in three of their four road contests this year and have also struggled at the sportsbooks, posting ATS wins in just two of their last six games according to the OddsShark NFL Database, while being favored by seven or more points in each of those clashes.
New England has also struggled in recent visits to the Rockies, posting just one SU win in their last five, getting outscored by over eight points per game in each of those losses.