Dolphins vs Raiders: Point spread continues to grow

The Miami Dolphins improved to 9-5 on the season with a 22-12 win over the New England Patriots this past weekend, keeping themselves in a position to claim a playoff berth when the regular season ends on January 3. The win gives Miami three victories in their last four contests and eight in their last ten games. Miami is hot as they prepare to head west to face the Las Vegas Raiders in a Saturday night prime-time game.

The Dolphins initially opened as a 1.5-point favorite against the Raiders, according to Sports Betting Dime. In writing about the opening line, SBD’s David Golokhov explained of the Dolphins, “Miami has been getting the job done thanks to a solid defense, which held the Pats to just 303 yards on Sunday and 12 points. The week prior, they became the first team ever to intercept Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes three times in a game.”

He then added, “These are two teams heading in opposite directions momentum-wise and that’s likely to play out on the point spread as well. The Dolphins have opened as a 1.5-point road favorite but expect to see money continue to come in on them until the line hits -3 – and possibly go higher...Expect bettors to stick with the momentum and back this Miami team throughout the week.”

Golokhov was exactly right, as the line has started to move as we hit mid-week, and it continues to favor the Dolphins. According to SBD, the Dolphins are now a 2.5-point favorite. The moneyline has Miami at -137, while the Raiders are +120. The over/under for the game is set at 48 points.

Over at Bovada.lv, the line has Miami as a 3-point favorite.

The Dolphins and Raiders kickoff at 8:15pm ET on Saturday.