2024 Las Vegas Raiders Odds & Preview: Antonio Pierce Has Taken Over

The Raiders finished last season strongly and will now have Antonio Pierce as their head coach from the start.

There is uncertainty as to who will start at quarterback this season, but Pierce's hiring will have fans optimistic. Whether they can realistically compete for a playoff spot, though, is another conversation.

Here's what you need to know about the Raiders entering 2024.

2024 Raiders Odds

Odds via FanDuel and as of Aug. 11.

2023 Raiders Betting Records

• 6-11 against the spread (-33.3% ROI)
• 5-12 to the over (-43.7% ROI)

Past Raiders Win Totals

Important Raiders Betting Stats

Antonio Pierce is the most prolific head coach against the spread, albeit in a nine-game sample. Last season, Pierce was 7-1-1 ATS.

Aidan O’Connell was the Raiders’ QB for most of that run; he was 7-2-1 ATS in his rookie season. Gardner Minshew is 17-20 ATS, while third-string QB Anthony Brown is 1-0.

Raiders Have Quarterback Uncertainty

The Raiders’ 2024 season ended on a positive note, with head coach Antonio Pierce energizing the team to a strong finish and earning the full-time job with general manager Tom Telesco, who has a knack for finding talent but not for winning in the playoffs, taking over after being fired by the Chargers.

Last year, Aidan O’Connell would have been the preseason MVP if such an award existed. He turned that into the chance to get some starts later in the regular season.

Now, O’Connell will compete with veteran Gardner Minshew, who is solid but unspectacular at this point in his NFL career. Neither player jumps out at you off the stat sheet, so this appears to be a legitimate quarterback battle ahead of Week 1.

O’Connell and Minshew are similar statistically, registering equal completion percentages last season (62%) and having their yards-per-attempt rate differ by just 0.2. O’Connell's touchdown rate at 3.5% was slightly higher than Minshew's 3.1%. Minshew’s QBR was higher than O’Connell, though, because of his ability to create big plays by moving outside of the pocket.

O’Connell reminds Action Network director of predictive analytics Sean Koerner of Jameis Winston with his potential for both exceptional throws and disastrous plays. Koerner sees value in O’Connell's broader range of outcomes and believes the “Raiders will be the underdog most of the time.”

Basically, Minshew is the safer bet to start because he’s a more proven commodity, but O’Connell certainly has more upside as a young player.

There were some key moves made to the Raiders offense this offseason, as well. Running back Josh Jacobs is gone; Zamir White should be expected to take on a significant workload in his place. Also, one year after drafting tight end Michael Mayer in the second round, former Georgia star Brock Bowers was taken with Las Vegas’ first-round pick.

How to Back the Raiders This Season

Action Network’s Chris Raybon gives a slight edge to Minshew in the QB battle based on his “raw projections.” If O’Connell remains a preseason star and wins the job, though, that would change the Raiders’ season-long outlook.

Bettors should get as much clarity as possible on the QB battle before betting any futures on this team, but the Raiders could be a popular underdog to bet throughout the start of the season regardless of which QB opens the season as the starter.

2024 Raiders Schedule Info

According to Action Network’s Sean Koerner, the Raiders will have the 10th-hardest schedule in the NFL.

Playing the Chiefs twice will always have you rank highly, but the Raiders also have to play on the road against the Ravens, Rams, Bengals and Dolphins.

Las Vegas' Week 1 Odds & Matchup

The Raiders open the season on the road against the division-rival Chargers in Week 1. They’re a three-point underdog in Los Angeles, while the game total of 42.5 is tied for the fourth lowest of the week.