The NFL preseason gets underway on Thursday when the Las Vegas Raiders square off against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2022 NFL Hall of Fame Game. Both teams begin the season with new head coaches, as Josh McDaniels joins Las Vegas after spending the previous 10 years as New England's offensive coordinator, while Doug Pederson, who led Philadelphia to a Super Bowl championship in 2017, was hired by the Jaguars. The Raiders (10-7) are hoping to build off a season in which they reached the playoffs for just the second time since 2002. Jacksonville (3-14) has finished last in the NFL the last two years, winning a total of four games in that span.
Kickoff from Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET. The line is pick'em in the latest Raiders vs. Jaguars odds at Caesars Sportsbook, while the over-under for total points scored is 30.5. Before locking in any Jaguars vs. Raiders picks or 2022 NFL Hall of Fame Game predictions, make sure you check out what SportsLine NFL expert Larry Hartstein has to say.
A former lead writer for Covers and The Linemakers, Hartstein combines a vast network of Vegas sources with an analytical approach he honed while working for Pro Football Focus. Entering the 2022 NFL season, he is 427-344 all-time on NFL sides (plus $3,764 for $100 players), including 394-330 against the spread.
Hartstein went 68-50 ATS (58 percent) and 8-3 on money-line plays last season for a profit of $1,552. Anybody who has been following him is way up.
Now, Hartstein has locked in on Raiders vs. Jaguars from every angle and released a confident against-the-spread pick for the NFL Hall of Fame Game 2022. You can visit SportsLine now to see his picks. Here are several NFL odds and trends for Jaguars vs. Raiders:
- Raiders vs. Jaguars spread: PK
- Raiders vs. Jaguars over/under: 30.5 points
- Raiders vs. Jaguars money line: Las Vegas -110, Jacksonville -110
- LV: Raiders have won all three of their previous appearances in the Hall of Fame Game
- JAX: Jaguars lost to Carolina in their only previous Hall of Fame Game in 1995
- Raiders vs. Jaguars picks: See picks here.
Why the Raiders can cover
Las Vegas fans may have to wait until the regular-season opener to see Derek Carr connect with former Fresno State teammate Davante Adams for the first time since 2013, but they'll get a chance to see who will serve as Carr's backup this year. Jarrett Stidham and Nick Mullens likely will battle for the No. 2 quarterback job, while undrafted rookie Chase Garbers hopes to earn a spot on the roster. The 25-year-old Stidham may have a slight advantage over Mullens since he spent the last three seasons with Josh McDaniels in New England, where the new Raiders coach served as offensive coordinator.
Stidham did not see any action with the Patriots last year, but was 24-of-48 for 270 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions in eight games over the previous two campaigns. The 27-year-old Mullens ironically made his only appearance for Cleveland in 2021 against Las Vegas in Week 15, going 20-for-30 for 147 yards and a TD in a 16-14 loss. He had 25 scoring passes and 22 picks in 19 games with San Francisco from 2018 to 2020, while Garbers threw for 2,531 yards and 16 TDs in 11 contests for the University of California last year.
Why the Jaguars can cover
Pederson won't allow many of Jacksonville's starters, including Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne, to suit up in the NFL Hall of Fame Game 2022, and backup quarterback C.J. Beathard also will be inactive due to a groin injury. That will leave the duties of running the offense to Jake Luton and Kyle Sloter, who have played in a combined total of three NFL regular-season games. All three of those appearances belong to Luton, who made three starts for the Jaguars in 2020.
The 26-year-old from Oregon State, who spent some time on Seattle's roster last season before returning to Jacksonville in February for a second stint, completed 60-of-110 passes for 624 yards with two touchdowns and six interceptions in those contests while scoring a 13-yard TD on his only rushing attempt. Sloter still is waiting to throw his first NFL regular-season pass as he joins his seventh club, but he received valuable experience with the USFL's New Orleans Breakers earlier this year, as he finished second in the league with 1,798 passing yards in nine games. The 28-year-old is familiar with the field in Canton, as he was 22-of-40 for 328 yards with a TD and two picks as New Orleans lost to Birmingham on June 25 in the Division Finals.
How to make Raiders vs. Jaguars picks
Hartstein has analyzed this matchup and while we can tell you he's leaning Under on the point total, he has discovered a critical X-factor that has him jumping all over one side of the spread. He's only sharing what it is, and which side to back, at SportsLine.
Who wins the 2022 Hall of Fame Game? And which critical X-factor makes one side of the spread a must-back? Visit SportsLine now to see Larry Hartstein's Raiders vs. Jaguars picks, all from the NFL expert who's 427-344 all-time on NFL sides, and find out.
