It’s crunch time for the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers, two NFC West giants who last met in last year’s NFC championship game, but currently find themselves on the outside of the NFC playoff picture looking in with only five weeks remaining.
The wild-card chasing division rivals begin the first of two meetings in the space of three weeks on Thanksgiving Thursday Night Football in San Francisco, with a loss to either team a potentially crippling blow to their postseason hopes. Read on to see which team gets a crucial edge in the playoff race.
The Green Bay Packers look primed to take one of the spots in this year’s NFC championship game, and they have a potential Super Bowl showdown this week against the AFC-best New England Patriots. Check out our preview of that game here.
[sc:Football ]Seattle Seahawks vs. San Francisco 49ers Betting Preview and Prediction
Where: Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara
When: Thursday, November 27, 4:25 PM ET
Line: Seattle Seahawks (pk) at San Francisco 49ers (pk); total 40.5 – see all NFL lines
Betting on the Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks finally showed glimpses of their old selves with a dominating 19-3 home win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. Against the top team in the league, the Seahawks merely stuck to the script which has served them so well: running the football and playing great defense.
[sc:NFL240banner ]The Seahawks had already been doing the first part of the equation well recently, as they were averaging 234 rushing yards per game prior to last Sunday. And against the Cardinal run defense that’s been arguably the best in the league, Seattle moved the ball for 124 yards on the ground, the most for any Cards opponent this season.
The other part of the equation – the defense – hasn’t been as consistent, though, as injuries have played their part in that unit taking a step back this season. But the Seahawks are finally getting healthy, with safety Kam Chancellor making big tackles and linebacker Bobby Wagner returning from four games out with turf toe to shore up the middle of the field. Arizona’s offense felt the full force of that defense, and was limited to just 204 total yards.
The Seahawks will be looking into the mirror, figuratively speaking, when they face a Niners team that essentially does what they do well. But the potential X-factor that swings this matchup could be quarterback Russell Wilson, who has been far less mistake prone compared to his San Francisco counterpart. Wilson has thrown just three picks to Kaepernick’s seven in four head-to-head matchups.
Create a betting account now and be a part of this longstanding West Coast feud, spiced up with playoff implications.
Betting on the San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers just about squeaked past the struggling Washington Redskins, 17-13, on Sunday to record their third consecutive win. However, it was another less than convincing win for the Niners, who have made a habit of those this season. Five of their seven wins have now come by less than a touchdown, including the last three in a row.
That’s what usually happens when a team has a poor offense to go along with an elite defense (No. 4 via DVOA through Week 11), which is what the Niners have had to deal with this year.
San Francisco’s offense has been all sorts of bad recently, managing just 33 total points against the subpar defenses of the Giants and Redskins. The Niners have scored over 17 points just once in their last five games.
The running game, which is the foundation of their entire offense, just couldn’t get going against the Redskins. It finished with just 66 yards on 29 carries, a measly 2.3 yards per carry. Running the ball will been key for the Niners to beating the Seahawks, as it has been in recent years. In both of their victories over Seattle in their last five meetings, the Niners topped 160 rushing yards on both occasions.
The Niners haven’t scored over 20 points in four games against the Seahawks with Colin Kaepernick at quarterback, but they might not need to score too many to win if their defense plays up to its ability. That unit hasn’t given up over 13 points in three of their last four games.
The return of Aldon Smith, who had two sacks and four quarterback hits against Washington, will only help that defense, specifically when it comes to pressuring Russell Wilson in the pocket.
Writer’s Prediction
Seattle’s improved defense and more consistent running game carry the day as the Seahawks get a crucial road win in San Francisco.
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