At the very least, Thanksgiving Day in Dallas this year will have the look of old-school football.
The Cowboys continue their Turkey Day tradition when they host the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday afternoon at AT&T Stadium in a clash of iconic NFL franchises.
So while the Thanksgiving slate is fairly underwhelming this year, a matchup featuring two bluebloods like the Cowboys and Raiders at least will look good on the TV.
It will look even better if you’re cashing a winning bet, too. With that said, here’s our betting preview for Thursday afternoon’s Cowboys-Raiders game with all lines, totals and prop bets from DraftKings Sportsbook.
Las Vegas Raiders at (-7.5) Dallas Cowboys
Total: 51
BETTING TRENDS
The Cowboys obviously are no stranger to these Thanksgiving Day games having played on Turkey Day every year since 1966. Data from the 1970s isn’t gonna do us much good, of course, so the historical trends aren’t worth a ton. What’s somewhat interesting, though, is Dallas is just 7-11 against the spread on Thanksgiving over the last 18 seasons, per Action Network. Again, what happened in 2005 doesn’t have much impact on this game at all, but the Cowboys are a very public team, and it doesn’t get more public than the Dallas on Thanksgiving. It’s worth wondering how much the betting line might be inflated in those spots. As 2.5-point favorites last year, Dallas lost Mike McCarthy’s Thanksgiving debut 41-16 to Washington. In fact, the Cowboys have actually lost three of their last four Thanksgiving games outright and seven of the last 11.
The Raiders, meanwhile, are watching a difficult season fall apart right in front of their eyes. Las Vegas opened the season 3-0 but has since lost five of seven, including their last three games. They lost those games by a combined 53 points, failing to cover in all three. They’ve been roughed up by the NFC, going 1-4 in their last five interconference showdowns, per Odds Shark.
GAME PROPS
First-half line, total
Cowboys -4.5, 26
Raiders total team points over/under 21.5
Cowboys total team points over/under 29.5
PLAYER PROPS
First touchdown scorer
Ezekiel Elliott +450
Josh Jacobs +900
Michael Gallup +1000
Cedrick Wilson +1000
Tony Pollard +1200
Dalton Schultz +1200
Darren Waller +1200
PICK
Raiders +7.5 — If you really like the Raiders in this spot, it probably makes sense to wait. There already are multiple sportsbooks that have moved Las Vegas to 8-point ‘dogs. Vegas admittedly is a mess right now but are still moving the ball with only seven teams averaging more yards per play over the last three weeks than the Raiders. Dallas’ defense did a very nice job last week in Kansas City, but they have some problems covering the tight ends. The Cowboys are allowing nearly 12 yards per reception to tight ends, and here comes Darren Waller who should be a focal point of the Vegas offensive attack. On the other side, the Cowboys aren’t healthy. Amari Cooper is on the COVID-19 list, and he’s unlikely to play. Meanwhile, CeeDee Lamb sustained a concussion in KC, leaving his status up in the air. The big injury, literally and figuratively, might be offensive tackle Tyron Smith. He missed the last three games with an ankle injury and while there’s optimism he’ll be able to play, will he be 100%? The Raiders sixth in quarterback knockdown percentage, so that’s another potential problem for Dallas. Add it all up, and seven points just feels a little too high.
