49ers Seahawks Odds

Written by Jack Jones

The San Francisco 49ers travel to face the Seattle Seahawks Sunday in a pivotal NFC West showdown. While the 49ers have already wrapped up the division, both teams still have something to play in terms of the playoffs. San Francisco can improve their seeding, while Seattle is just looking to stay alive for a spot in the postseason. The home team has won five straight in this series, including a 33-17 home victory by the 49ers on September 11th. Ted Ginn Jr. single-handedly won this one for the 49ers. He returned a kickoff 102 yards for a touchdown, while also bringing back a punt 55 yards for a score.

Oddsmakers in Las Vegas have installed a spread of San Francisco -2.5 over Seattle with a total set of 38 points.

San Francisco

The 49ers have been the surprise team in the league this season. San Francisco (11-3, 4-2 away) clinched the NFC West a few weeks back with a 26-0 shutout home victory over St. Louis. After losing to Arizona on the road the next week, the 49ers would rebound with a 20-3 home victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday Night football in Week 15. That win puts the 49ers in control of their own destiny. If they win out, they will earn at least the No. 2 seed in the NFC and a first-round bye. They still have an outside chance to overtake the Packers for the No. 1 seed as well.

San Francisco put together one of their most dominant performances of the season in their win over the Steelers earlier this week. It was an all-around team effort as they got contributions from every phase without making many mistakes. The 49ers forced four turnovers while not giving the ball away once. Alex Smith went 18 of 31 passing for 187 yards with a touchdown. Frank Gore carried 18 times for 65 yards and a score. Vernon Davis was Smith’s favorite target, catching six balls for 72 yards and a touchdown.

The 49ers rank 5th in the NFL in total defense (311.1 yards/game), including 1st against the run (71.5 yards/game). However, they are just 25th in total offense (307.4 yards/game), and they feature the league’s worst red zone touchdown efficiency offense as well. As a result, kicker David Akers has broken Jerry Rice’s NFL single-season record for points scored. Their red zone defense has been tremendous to make up for it. San Francisco hasn’t allowed a single rushing touchdown all season, which is an NFL record through 14 games. They also have the NFL’s best turnover differential (+25), and Pro Bowl linebacker Patrick Willis could return this week from an injured right hamstring after missing the last two games.

Seattle

The Seahawks have been an excellent story here over the last few months. Seattle (7-7, 4-3 home) did not panic after their 2-6 start, instead digging deep to get things turned around. The Seahawks have won five of their last six, including three straight blowout wins. They have outscored the Eagles, Rams and Bears by a combined score of 99-41 during this run, topping 30 points in all three while allowing 14 or less in each. Had it not been for a blown 17-7 lead in the fourth quarter on November 27th against the Redskins, the Seahawks would be riding a six-game winning streak.

Seattle is coming off a 38-14 road victory over the Chicago Bears. The Bears actually led this game 14-7 at halftime before having it snowball on them after intermission. The Seahawks would go on to score 31 unanswered points after the break to turn a tight game into a blowout. Included were two defensive touchdowns; a 20-yard interception return by lineman Red Bryant, and a 42-yard interception return by Brandon Browner. Seattle only gained 286 yards of offense, but that’s all they needed. Tarvaris Jackson threw for 227 yards and a score, while Marshawn Lynch rushed for 42 yards and two touchdowns to lead the offense.

The Seahawks come in ranked just 28th in the NFL in total offense (308.0 yards/game), but a respectable 8th in total defense (327.0 yards/game). Jackson is completing 60.7 percent of his passes for 2,706 yards with 12 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Lynch has rushed for 1,011 yards and 11 scores. These two have helped keep Seattle alive for a playoff hunt, but they need a lot to go right the rest of the way to get in. Both Atlanta and Detroit sit two games ahead of Seattle, and the Seahawks need each to lose out while also getting some other games to go their way.

Betting Trends

The 49ers are 12-3-1 ATS in their last 14 games overall, and 11-1 ATS in their last 12 games as a favorite. However, San Francisco is just 3-10-1 ATS in their last 14 games as a road favorite.

The Seahawks are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games overall, 8-1 ATS in their last 9 vs. NFC opponents, and 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games as an underdog. But Seattle is just 4-22-1 ATS in their last 27 games following a SU win of more than 14 points.

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