Both Denver and Baltimore are coming off bye weeks, but they return to action in much different situations. Denver has raced to a 6-0 start and a commanding lead in the AFC West. The Ravens, meanwhile, spoiled a 3-0 start with three consecutive losses.

Denver Broncos at Baltimore Ravens

Sunday, Nov. 1 at 1:00 p.m. ET

NFL betting: Ravens -3

Are the Ravens contenders or pretenders? It’s very difficult to say. Two of their first three wins came against creampuffs (Cleveland and Kansas City) while they lost three in a row to New England, Cincinnati and Minnesota—by a total of 11 points. Offensively, there are few complaints. Ray Rice is emerging as one of the league’s most impressive running backs. He’s coming off a two-touchdown, 294-yard effort against the Vikings and is averaging nearly 130 yards from scrimmage per game.

Of course, offense hasn’t been the problem. The once-vaunted Ravens “D” has completely imploded and is allowing over 20 points per game. The passing defense is surrendering 241 yards per outing and shows no signs of improvement on the horizon. If Baltimore wants to compete in the AFC North, the defense must shape up quickly.

Defense hasn’t been an issue in Denver. The Broncos are allowing a paltry 11 points per game while playing stingy against both run and pass. Minimizing big plays has been a major factor; Denver has allowed just one run of 20-plus yards and one pass of 40-plus yards, both tied for tops in the NFL.

The Broncos have been very efficient with the football. They won’t be breaking scoring records any time soon but, with their defense, they don’t need to. The ground game has been very effective at 132 yards per outing, but don’t shortchange Kyle Orton on your sports betting system; he’s turned over the ball just once this season, on a meaningless end-of-half Hail Mary, no less.

It’s always difficult to make NFL picks on a team coming out of the bye, and in this matchup we have two of them. There’s no telling who will come out fresh or flat but, based on what we’ve seen this year, the Broncos are the team to bet. Denver has the “D” to slow Rice and Co. while the offense will quietly chug away with some impressive rushing totals. Hard to believe, but bet on Denver to go 7-0.