Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears
Sunday, 12/18/11, 1:00 PM EST, TV: FOX
Opening Point Spread: Chicago -4
Current Betting Line: Chicago -3
Opening Total: 35.5
Current Total: 35
Odds Courtesy of Bookmaker
Seattle has been playing great football in winning four of five games and comes off a 30-13 win over the St. Louis Rams as nine-point home favorites. The Seahawks have also gone ‘over’ the total in three consecutive contests. “We have some young talent,” commented Seahawks quarterback Tarvaris Jackson. “We have guys that are buying into what our coaches are telling us.” He will be under center after being a full participant in practice on Thursday and Friday. Seattle is 8-4 ATS this year and 2-4 ATS against NFC North opponents the last two-plus seasons.
The Seahawks and Bears are playing for the third consecutive season and seventh time in the past six years. Seattle will be looking to gain revenge in getting knocked out of the playoffs last year by Chicago. Running back Marshawn Lynch has gained a league-high 706 rushing yards over the past six games. The former California Golden Bears star needs just 31 yards from his third 1,000-yard season. On the other side of the ball, Seattle ranks 11th in the league in allowing just 104.3 rushing yards per game.
Chicago has lost three straight games at the absolute worst time and many experts around the league believe the team’s chances of making the playoffs has vanished. The Bears are coming off a heartbreaking 13-10 overtime loss to the Denver Broncos, which could be hard to get over Sunday. “Definitely one of the toughest ones I’ve had to deal with, we’ve had to deal with,” commented Bears head coach Lovie Smith. He will look to rally the locker room being one-game back of the Detroit Lions for the second and final NFC wild card berth. Chicago is 3-6 ATS in December the last two-plus seasons.
The Bears will be piloted by backup quarterback Caleb Hanie, who will be making his fourth straight start in place of the injured Jay Cutler. Chicago will also be handing the ball off to Marion Barber due to star player Matt Forte still being out with a knee injury. The offense will be facing a defense that ranks 13th in the league in total yards allowed. On the other side of the ball, the unit has allowed just one touchdown in each of the last three games.
Bettors will likely back the Bears due to their 4-1 ATS mark as a favorite, while the Seahawks are 8-20-1 ATS as a road underdog.
Don’t miss out on a winning season and let the NFL handicappers at Maddux Sports line your pockets with cash. Long term packages are available now!
