The Washington Redskins (3-4) will travel to the Pacific Northwest to take on the Seahawks (5-2) in the comfortable confines of CenturyLink Fields. This game will kick off at 4:05 PM/ET.
Seattle is coming off a huge victory over the Houston Texans. In that game, Seattle allowed 38 points, however, Seattle’s offense did just enough putting up 41 points against the porous Texans’ defense.
On the other side of this matchup, the Redskins are in the midst of a two-game losing streak, as well as losers of three of their last four games. All three of those losses came against NFC East opponents. Facing a surging Seattle offense, expect the Redskins to struggle against a superior Seattle squad.
Seattle’s offense is more boom than bust.
When Seattle went to back-to-back Super Bowls, it was with a defense-first approach. The offense complemented their defense with an aggressive running style. Russell Wilson and the Seattle passing attack played second fiddle within that style of offense.
Since the retirement and departure of Marshawn Lynch, the Seattle offense has transformed to feature a more vertical passing attack. Over that last few weeks, Russell Wilson and the Seattle passing attack have broken out of their early-season slump to emerge as a true threat among NFC contenders.
Can Wilson lead the Seahawks in rushing?
The biggest concern for Seattle moving forward is their rushing attack. Seattle relies heavily on the passing game to carry their offense, but they’ll need a solid rushing attack to rely on when the playoffs start.
According to NFL Stats, Seattle has the 22nd rank rushing attack in the NFL. Through nine weeks, Seattle’s leading rusher is Chris Carson with 208 yards on 49 attempts. That total is only 14 yards more than Russell Wilson on the season.
Having a quarterback leading a team in rushing through nine weeks is almost unheard of and speaks to both Wilson’s greatness and to Seattle’s struggles. Before their season ends, the Seahawks need to set up a consistent ground attack.
With a Redskins’ defense that ranks 13th against the run, expect Wilson to lead the Seahawks in rushing by the end of this contest.
Are the Redskins already out of the playoffs?
After two straight losses, the wheels to the Redskins’ season have completely come unhinged. Last week’s loss to the Cowboys was a tremendous blow to Washington’s playoff hopes. Washington’s only shot at making the playoffs is to secure a wildcard spot. The rest of Washington’s schedule, however, features only four teams with losing records.
The Redskins will need to win those four contests, as well as beat at least three or more quality opponents. Playing Seattle at home is never an easy proposition for opponents but, with so many quality teams remaining on Washington’s schedule, the Redskins cannot afford to lose for a third straight week.
Washington’s best shot against Seattle is attacking their defensive backs. Seattle’s defense is known for it’s “Legion of Boom” secondary, however, their star safety Earl Thomas will not play this week due to injury. Seattle’s secondary isn’t playing at a championship level, and Cousins will need to challenge them by taking shots deep throughout the game.
Running back, Chris Thompson is Cousins’ most consistent weapon, but he’ll need a lot more out of Washington’s receiving core if they want to pull the upset. Expect the Redskins to throw a lot in this game.
Seahawks vs Redskins Betting Lines
BetOnline.ag has the Seahawks favored to win the game by 7.5 points. The over/under on total points scored is 44.5. You can read our full BetOnline review here.
My Pick
The Redskins are desperate and desperation can inspire an offense, but Cousins hasn’t shown that he can carry this team when the stakes are highest. Meanwhile, Russell Wilson has carried Seattle’s offense this season. Expect Wilson to lead the Seahawks in rushing, as well as find Jimmy Graham multiple times for big gains in this game, on their way to another victory.
Play: Seahawks -7.5 @ BetOnline.ag
NFL week 9 betting pick • Seattle Seahawks betting • Washington Redskins betting