The Seahawks were rolling until losing their last game at home and in this NFC West matchup they are a five-point favorite facing the winless Arizona Cardinals with a total of 48.
‘The Cardinals have two losses and a tie and while #1 pick Kyler Murray has shown flashes of being a legit starter, he has also struggled a lot and has not led his team to any wins.
Last season the Seahawks beat the Cardinals twice but both games were very close.
While the Cardinals are 4-0-1 ATS in their last five games facing the Seahawks, overall, they are 1-4-1 ATS in their last five home games against them.
Racking Up the Yards in Loss
In their last game the Seahawks were on the road and lost to the New Orleans Saints 33-27 even though they had 230 more yards. They had the same number of turnovers but their offense did not get it going until the 4th quarter when they scored 20 points.
Russell Wilson lit it up in the loss passing for 406 yards with two TD and no INT and Tyler Lockett led Seattle with 154 receiving yards.
Chris Carson rushed for 53 yards only averaging 2.5 yards per carry and Wilson had 51 rushing yards.
Last season the Seahawks were a run first team that made the playoffs and this season they rank 10th in the league in passing yards per game and 15th in rushing yards per game. In this game they will be facing a Cardinals’ defense that has given up the 3rd most yards in the league and is giving up an average of 157 rushing yards per game.
Give the Kid Some Protection
Kyler Murray played behind one the best offensive lines in football at Oklahoma last season but that is not the case this season with the Cardinals. He was sacked eight times in Arizona’s last game, which was a 38-20 loss to the Carolina Panthers.
Murray passed for 173 yards and did have two TD but was picked off twice and the sacks were drive killers.
Murray did not get much help in the game, as he was also the leading rusher with 69 yards. Duke Johnson was the lead RB but only rushed for 37 yards averaging 3.4 yards per carry.
The Carolina game mirrored the season for the Cardinals, as Murray had flashes, but the team has other major issues. The offensive line has struggled, the run game only ranks 26th in the league in rushing yards per game, and the team is giving up nearly 30 ppg.
Our Prediction
The Seahawks have covered the spread in six of their last seven road games while the Cardinals have failed to cover in four of their last five home games.
The underdog is 7-0-1 ATS in the last eight games between these teams but can that trend continue with Arizona winless and facing a Seattle team that needs a win with a tough upcoming schedule?
The Seahawks will get back to last season’s blueprint of running the ball and they will do it well in this game. Like the first three games Murray will have some big plays but also make some rookie mistakes. Seattle will get the win in this one and they will also cover the spread keeping Arizona winless on the season.
Our Pick: Seahawks -5