Baltimore at Jacksonville NFL Odds & Expert Betting Prediction for Week 3

The Baltimore Ravens make their first trip across the Atlantic Ocean to play in England when they take on the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday with the NFL odds on their side. The Ravens lead the AFC North with a 2-0 record after blanking Cincinnati in their opener and then knocking off the Browns by two touchdowns a week ago. However, they have lost right guard Marshall Yanda to an ankle fracture, so their offensive line will have some questions to answer on Sunday. The Jaguars enter with a 1-1 record after routing Houston in Week One but then coming home to lose by 21 to Tennessee last week. These two teams faced off in 2016, with Baltimore winning by two down in Florida. Take a look at our NFL betting odds & prediction to help you decide how you want to play this contest.

Baltimore at Jacksonville NFL Odds & Expert Betting Prediction for Week 3

Reeeeeeeeed. #FlockToLondon pic.twitter.com/ASsKyG9ewI

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) September 21, 2017

When: Sunday, September 24, 2017, 9:30am ET Where: Wembley Stadium, London TV: Yahoo! Radio: 97.9 FM (Baltimore) / 92.5 FM (Jacksonville) Live Stream: NFL Live NFL Odds: Baltimore -4, O/U 39.5

Why should you bet on the Ravens?

Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco looks like he his back to his 2014 form. Against Cleveland, he went 25 for 34 for 217 yards with a pair of touchdowns (and an interception). His favorite target was tight end Ben Watson (8 catches for 91 yards). The running attack is still a little under construction, as Buck Allen carried the ball 14 times for 68 yards. Developing some greater balance will help the Ravens when some of the tougher opponents on their schedule show up. The real story for the Ravens has been turnover differential. Against Cincinnati and Cleveland, the Ravens have taken the ball away 10 times. Against the Browns, they picked off four passes, and they had six takeaways against the Bengals, forcing Andy Dalton into one of the ten worst quarterback ratings of all time. The Jaguars come in with a quarterback who is still questioning his own abilities in Blake Bortles, and a running attack that is led by rookie Leonard Fournette. Given that the Jacksonville offense is still trying to solidify its collective identity, Baltimore should be able to control the Jaguar attack while moving the ball up and down the field themselves.

Why should you put your money on the Jaguars?

Given how opportunistic the Baltimore defense is, the Jaguars need to fix their problems with ball security pronto. They had three consecutive drives end in turnovers (a pair of interceptions and a fumble) last week. So while the halftime score saw them down just 6-3, the momentum that came from those turnovers helped Tennessee run out to a 31-point second half. Bortles had done a better job protecting the ball in the season opener against Houston, as he did not turn the ball over at all. However, the rash of miscues gave Tennessee opportunity after opportunity, and they took advantage. Leonard Fournette broke the 100-yard barrier in his debut against Houston. However, against Tennessee, he carried the ball 14 times for just 40 yards. So even though he found the end zone late in the game, he did not help the team move the ball up and down the field. As a result, the Titans had too many short fields, which helped them gallop to that rout in the second half.

NFL Odds Trends

 

• Baltimore is 2-6 ATS in its last 8 games on the road
• Baltimore is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games on the road
• The total went UNDER in 5 of Baltimore’s last 5 games when playing Jacksonville
• Jacksonville is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
• Jacksonville is 2-11 SU in its last 13 games
• The total went OVER in 4 of Jacksonville’s last 6 games

 

Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

Many of the NFL’s fields have changed to a synthetic turf, but Wembley Stadium (which primarily hosts soccer matches) is natural grass. The Ravens have covered the spread in five of their last six games on grass, while Jacksonville has only covered the spread once in their last five games on a natural surface. The Ravens have also prospered in September lately, covering the spread in four of their last five September contests, while Jacksonville has only covered seven of their last 26 September spreads. I see the Ravens winning this one, 24-9.