Books Losing Faith In Manning

It may have only been one game, but the market has spoken, and the books have lost confidence in the Denver Broncos, or more particularly Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning.

Denver won an ugly game, 19-13, against the Baltimore Ravens, but the numbers everyone was paying attention to was not the score but Manning’s dismal stat line.

In response, the books have moved the Kansas City Chiefs to -3-point favorites against the Broncos. When the odds first opened in Vegas a few weeks ago, the Broncos were favored.

Manning normally plays well early in the season and runs out of steam toward the end of the year. The conditions could not have been more ideal, in Denver against a rebuilding defense, and Manning performed poorly.

Despite all that, the Broncos are 6-0 straight up against the Chiefs. Over that time they have covered four times. Overall, Kansas City is 5-1 against the spread over it last six games as favorites. That one in the loss column comes courtesy of the Broncos last season.

For total bettors, it is set at 42.5. Denver is 6-3 on the UNDER. The Chiefs closed last season 5-1 on the UNDER. Over these two teams last six meetings they are 4-1-1 on the UNDER. The most recent totals, though, have surpassed 49 points.

The Broncos and Chiefs will start their game at around 8:30 p.m. ET.