This NFC Wild Card Playoff game will take place at TCF Bank Stadium with both the Seattle Seahawks and Minnesota Vikings seeking to stay alive. The NFL’s leading rusher, Adrian Peterson (1,485 yards, 11 TDs), will be a player to watch in this game. Kickoff is at 1:05 p.m. ET on Sunday, Jan 10 and will air on NBC.
In last week’s game, Minnesota got a win over the Packers 20-13. Everson Griffen led the defensive effort for Minnesota in the victory, recording five tackles and two sacks. Seattle also won last week, cruising past the Cardinals 36-6. Christine Michael had a huge game running the ball for the Seahawks, dashing 17 times for 102 yards. Russell Wilson chipped in with 197 yards and three TDs through the air.
The Seahawks take on the Vikings as a four-point favorite this week. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is sitting at 42 points.
Sitting at 11-5 Straight Up (SU) and 13-3 Against The Spread (ATS), the Vikings will look to improve heading into Week 18. In their five most recent matchups, the Vikings went 3-2 SU and 4-1 ATS. Minnesota has averaged 26 points per game over the last five weeks, higher than its season average of 22.8. The Vikings love to run, ranking fourth in the league with 29.6 rushing attempts per game. As for the Minnesota defense, a few key matchups could decide this game. The Vikings will need to attack the quarterback against the Seahawks, who rank 27th in sacks allowed with 2.9 per game. Minnesota makes the most of its talent on special teams, averaging a league-high 107.2 return yards per game.
Shifting to the opposition, the Seahawks head into Week 18 with records of 8-7-1 ATS and 10-6 SU. Over their last five games, the Seahawks have a SU and ATS record of 4-1. Seattle has made opposing defenses suffer as of late, averaging 31 points per game over the last five games. This improved stretch brought its season average to 26.4 PPG. Seattle yields excellent returns with its running attack, where its 141.8 rushing yards per game ranks third in the league. Seattle’s league-best road scoring defense is not swayed by home-field advantage, allowing 15.2 points per away game this year. Seattle is a terrifying group for opposing offenses. The Seahawks give up 210.2 yards per game through the air, second in the league. The Minnesota offensive line is in for a challenge this week, because the Seahawks get to opposing quarterbacks with ease during their away games. The Seahawks defense is currently third in the league with an average of 2.8 sacks per road game. It’ll be difficult to keep Seattle’s offense off the field this week. The team’s average time of possession is 32:14, ranking fourth in the league.
Predictions: SU Winner – Sea, ATS Winner – Sea, O/U – Under
Notes
Minnesota is 9-3 SU in its last 12 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Minnesota’s last 9 games at home.
Minnesota is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games at home.
Minnesota is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing Seattle.
Minnesota is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Seattle.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Minnesota’s last 5 games when playing Seattle.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Minnesota’s last 5 games when playing at home against Seattle.
Seattle is 9-3 SU when leading at the start of the fourth quarter this season. Minnesota is 10-0 SU when carrying a lead into the fourth quarter.
Minnesota is 4-2 SU in games where it wins the turnover battle, and 6-1 SU in games where it loses the turnover battle.
Seattle is rated higher in the ground game on both sides of the ball. Its third-ranked rushing attack will face the 17th-ranked run defense of Minnesota, while its first-ranked rush defense will look to contain the fourth-ranked run game of the Vikings.
