The Green Bay Packers have won their last two games to get back to .500 on the season. The Packers have showed signs that they are slowly righting the ship but they have a tough road ahead beginning this week when they clash with the Seattle Seahawks at Lambeau Field.
Moneyline: Seattle -145
Handicap/Spread Odds: Seattle -3
Total O/U: 46.5
Last 5 Meetings: (Road/Home – Spread/Total)
| 09/20/15 | SEA 17 – GB 27 | GB -3.5 | U 49 |
| 09/20/15 | SEA 17 – GB 27 | GB 8.5 | O 45 |
| 09/14/12 | GB 16 – SEA 36 | SEA -4.5 | O 46.5 |
| 09/24/12 | GB 12 – SEA 14 | SEA 3 | U 45.5 |
| 12/27/09 | SEA 10 – GB 48 | GB -13.5 | O 43.5 |
On The Seahawks Side of the Ball (8-3-1 Record, 7-5 ATS)
Seattle is coming off a dominant 40-7 win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday Night Football and is in control of its own destiny when it comes to potentially securing a first-round playoff bye in the NFC. The Seahawks play two of their next three at home against division rivals before wrapping up their regular season on the road in San Francisco so this will definitely be their toughest test before the playoffs. Thomas Rawls is coming off a monster performance in which he rushed for 106 yards and two touchdowns. Seattle might need to lean on Rawls even more if the winter conditions take their toll on Sunday while Russell Wilson is always a threat to use his legs as well. Meanwhile, the Seahawks will be without Earl Thomas, whose season-ending injury has left a major hole in their secondary. The Legion Of Boom will need to step up without Thomas this week as they attempt to keep Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay offense from hitting its stride.
Last 5 Results:
| 12/04/16 | CAR | W 40-7 | W -8 | O 43.5 |
| 11/27/16 | @TB | L 5-14 | L -5 | U 46 |
| 11/20/16 | PHI | W 26-15 | W -6.5 | U 42.5 |
| 11/13/16 | @NE | W 31-24 | W 7.5 | O 49.5 |
| 11/07/16 | BUF | W 31-25 | W -5.5 | O 43.5 |
On The Packers Side of the Ball (6-6 Record, 6-5-1 ATS)
The Packers enter this week two games back of the Detroit Lions for the NFC North lead but just one game back of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the final Wild Card spot. Rodgers put on a clinic in last week’s win over the Houston Texans when he completed 20-of-30 pass attempts for two touchdowns in the snowy conditions so he should have an edge at home. The Seattle defense will represent a much tougher test even without Thomas so the Packers might need to lean even more on a backfield that combined for 109 rushing yards and a touchdown last week. The Green Bay defense did a good job last week against Houston but will need to be that much more disciplined against a dangerous Seahawks rushing attack on Sunday.
Last 5 Results:
| 12/04/16 | HOU | W 21-13 | W -6.5 | U 44.5 |
| 11/28/16 | @PHI | W 27-13 | W 4 | U 47 |
| 11/20/16 | @WAS | L 24-42 | L 3 | O 48 |
| 11/13/16 | @TEN | L 25-47 | L -3 | O 48.5 |
| 11/06/16 | IND | L 26-31 | L -7.5 | 0 52 |
Quick Analysis
The Packers didn’t seem to miss a beat in the snow and wind at Lambeau last week as they won and covered for the second week in a row. Green Bay is 3-0 against the spread in its last three home games against Seattle and they need to keep that trend going this week in order to stay in the playoff hunt. Meanwhile, Seattle has won and covered in four of its last five overall and is 7-5 ATS this season.
Prediction
The Seahawks will represent a much tougher test for Green Bay than the Texans brought to the table last week but there are a lot of positives to take from what Rodgers and company have done the past couple of weeks. But the deficiencies simply can’t be overcome. The bottom line is that the Packers defense is beaten up in the worst way and they still can’t run the ball. Expecting to beat a team like Seattle with those issues figures to be a deal-breaker.
The Seahawks are going to be feeding the ball to Thomas Rawls, who had a break out last week, and they’re going to play keep away from Rodgers. And when Rodgers does have the ball, he’s going to be very predictable with non-stop passes. While that works against the Eagles and Texans, it won’t fly against the Seahawks. The Seahawks are the play here.
Pick: Seahawks -3
Note: Lines subject to change leading up to kick-off, so please be aware of the possibility of line movements.
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