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With their third straight win, the Denver Broncos (6-6) are suddenly looking like a good football team while the San Francisco 49ers (2-10) have been eliminated from playoff contention and are competing for the top draft pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Before the Broncos beat the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, they opened 3.5 favorites over the 49ers. After a convincing road win and a 49ers blowout loss, the line has since moved to a solid 5.5-6 point spread in favor of Denver.
The Broncos will need to continue winning games to stay in the AFC playoff hunt and will need either the Baltimore Ravens or Pittsburgh Steelers to stumble a few times down the stretch. None of that will matter if they don’t first take care of the 49ers on the road.
For the season, Denver is 2-2 against the spread as a favorite, but 2-0 when favored on the road.