Packers vs. Seahawks Betting Odds – NFC Conference Game
Carrie Stroup here with your Packers vs. Seahawks betting odds for Sunday’s NFC Conference Game. Place your 1st bet, get your 2nd bet FREE here.
GREEN BAY PACKERS (13-4) at SEATTLE SEAHAWKS (13-4)
Sportsbook.ag Line: Seattle -7.5, Total: 46.5
Opening Line: Seattle -7, Total: 46.5
The Seahawks look to advance to their second straight Super Bowl when they host the Packers on Sunday.
Green Bay hosted the Cowboys last Sunday and ended up winning 26-21 as a 5.5-point home favorite, giving the team an 8-1 SU record (5-4 ATS) in their past nine contests. The club has now won three straight games by a combined score of 76 to 44, covering in the two contests before the ATS loss to Dallas last week.
Seattle hosted the Panthers last Saturday and won 31-17 as a 13.5-point home favorite, giving the club seven straight wins (SU and ATS) where it has won by an average score of 24 to 8. While the Seahawks are now 25-2 SU (20-7 ATS) at home in the past three seasons, the Packers were only 4-4 SU (3-5 ATS) on the road this season, which included a lopsided 36-16 loss in Week 1 here in Seattle at Century Link Field. This dominant Seattle defense was able to hold Green Bay to just 255 total yards in that game and produced a rushing advantage of 207 to 80.
The Packers are 15-5 ATS after having won three out of their previous four games over the past three years, but are just 1-8 ATS as an underdog in the past two seasons. They are up against a Seahawks team that is 10-1 ATS in the past two seasons after allowing 17 points or less in two straight games and are also 7-0 ATS in the past three seasons after 5+ consecutive wins.
Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers (calf) is still not close to 100 percent, but he’ll be ready to play for Sunday. For Seattle, WR Paul Richardson suffered a season-ending knee injury last week, and both S Jeron Johnson (elbow) and TE Tony Moeaki (calf) are questionable for Sunday.
The Packers trailed the Cowboys 21-13 with a little over four minutes remaining in the third quarter and then QB Aaron Rodgers (4,381 yards, 38 TD, 5 INT) took over. The hobbled quarterback threw two touchdowns from that point on and finished the game with 316 yards, 3 TD and 0 INT. Rodgers is now 6-4 SU (5-4-1 ATS) in his playoff career with 281 passing YPG (8.0 YPA), 22 TD and 5 INT, but he’ll need to be much better than he was the last time he played Seattle, when he threw for just 189 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
One receiver who really made things easier on Rodgers last week was rookie WR Davante Adams (38 rec, 446 yards, 3 TD). Adams tied a season high with seven catches that went for 117 yards and a touchdown. WR Randall Cobb (91 rec, 1,287 yards, 12 TD) also had a big game for the Packers, catching eight passes for 116 yards. Top WR Jordy Nelson (98 rec, 1,519 yards, 13 TD) was relatively ineffective in this game, catching just two passes for 22 yards, but he was able to find space versus Seattle in Week 1 with nine catches for 83 yards, which were both game highs.
RB Eddie Lacy (1,139 yards, 9 TD) rushed for 101 yards on 19 carries in last Sunday's win, but had a big chunk of that yardage in the first and second quarters before he left the game due to his asthma bothering him. However, in the Week 1 meeting with Seattle, Lacy managed only 34 yards on 12 carries (2.8 YPC).
Defensively, Green Bay will need to stop the run in order to win. The team allowed the Seahawks to rush for 207 yards on 5.6 YPC in the last meeting and can’t afford to do that again on Sunday. The Packers will need to force some turnovers, but after amassing 22 takeaways in the first 10 games of the season, they have just six forced turnovers in the past seven contests.
In the Seahawks win over the Panthers last weekend, QB Russell Wilson (3,475 pass yards, 20 TD, 7 INT) was absolutely brilliant when his team needed him most. Wilson threw for 268 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions, which improved his career playoff record to 5-1 (SU and ATS) where he's thrown for 227 passing YPG (9.0 YPA), 9 TD and only 1 INT.
Wilson's top receiver last Saturday was WR Jermaine Kearse (38 rec, 537 yards, 1 TD), who had three catches for 129 yards and a touchdown. TE Luke Willson (22 rec, 362 yards, 3 TD) and WR Doug Baldwin (66 rec, 825 yards, 3 TD) also combined for seven catches, 106 yards and two touchdowns in the game. They could have more trouble against a tough Green Bay secondary that has held its past four opponents to a mere 151 passing YPG. Although Wilson threw for 191 yards, 2 TD and 0 INT in the Week 1 victory, but his leading receiver that day was Percy Harvin (7 rec, 59 yards), who is now with the Jets. Seattle won't forget about their running game though as they'll try to win this game on the ground with Wilson (849 rush yards, 7.2 YPC, 6 TD) and RB Marshawn Lynch (1,306 rush yards, 4.7 YPC, 13 TD).
Lynch rushed for just 59 yards on 14 carries against the Panthers last Saturday, but the last time the Seahawks took on the Packers, Lynch exploded for 110 yards and two touchdowns on just 20 carries (5.5 YPC). He also caught one pass for 14 yards in that game.
The Seahawks defense sacked Cam Newton twice last game and also forced three turnovers, including a 90-yard interception return by S Kam Chancellor in the fourth quarter. They’ll look to apply plenty of pressure against Aaron Rodgers, as his calf injury will certainly limit his mobility. Seattle has forced 12 turnovers in the past six games, and has not allowed more than 17 points during its current seven-game win streak.
