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Carrie Stroup here with your Seattle Seahawks vs. San Francisco 49ers betting odds courtesy of Sportsbook.com, which was offering up to $250 in FREE CASH when you join here today.
Kickoff: Thursday, 8:20 p.m. EDT
Line: San Francisco -7, Total: 37.5
First place is on the line in the NFC West when Seattle visits San Francisco on Thursday night.
The Niners have a chance to reassert their dominance over the division. They’ve won 10 in a row SU at home versus division opponents (9-1 ATS), outscoring opponents 82-24 in three games under Jim Harbaugh a year ago. Both of these defenses have been outstanding early, though the red-hot 49ers offense was stumped by the Giants last week (as many points as interceptions: three). The Seahawks were held under 300 yards of offense in both meetings with San Francisco last year. The last three times Seattle has flown down to San Francisco, it has suffered beatings of 23-10, 40-21 and 33-17. Marshawn Lynch is the only Seahawks player capable of gaining yards on this stout 49ers defense, but he has rushed for a mere 62 yards (2.7 YPC) in two career visits to Candlestick Park. In fact, going back seven meetings, San Francisco has held Seattle to 80 rushing yards per game. The 49ers have done a great job bouncing back from defeats in recent years too, going 11-3 ATS after an SU loss and 7-0 ATS after an upset loss as a favorite over the past three seasons. The pick here is SAN FRANCISCOto win and cover
Seattle QB Russell Wilson is coming off a career day in leading his team back from a 13-point, fourth-quarter deficit to beat New England last week. He threw for 293 yards and 3 TD in the 24-23 win. He has struggled on the road in his rookie season though, posting a 60.3 passer rating (6.4 YPA, 2 TD, 6 INT). Despite Wilson's heroics last week, RB Marshawn Lynch was bottled up for a season-low 41 yards on 15 carries (2.7 YPC). Although San Francisco's run defense is tough (92 YPG allowed, 9th in NFL), it did just allow the Giants to gain 149 yards on the ground last Sunday. Using a heavy dose of Lynch is likely the game plan on Thursday. That will help keep Seattle turnovers in check (8 in past three games), as Wilson won't be forced to throw very much against the 49ers second-ranked pass defense (183 YPG.
Although San Francisco has the best rushing offense in the NFL (177 YPG), it won't be easy to gain yards against a Seattle team that ranks second in the league in rushing defense (70 YPG). Frank Gore has a pair of 200-yard rushing games in his career against the Seahawks, but has been held to just 51 rushing YPG and 2.9 YPC in his past four meetings with his NFC West foe. 49ers QB Alex Smith appeared to be quite bothered by the sprained the middle finger on his throwing hand last week, tossing three interceptions in a game for the first time since December 2009, a span of 37 games. However, since 2006, Smith has been interception-free in eight of nine meetings with Seattle. He'll once again lean on his favorite targets, WR Michael Crabtree (team-high 44 targets and 30 catches) and TE Vernon Davis (team-best 340 receiving yards, 4 TD).
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
