Bills vs. Seahawks Week 8 Predictions: Can Geno Smith Outgun Josh Allen?

Buffalo Bills (5-2 SU, 4-3 ATS) vs. Seattle Seahawks (4-3 SU, 2-4-1 ATS)
NFL Football Week 8
Date/Time: Sunday, October 27, 2024 at 4:05PM EDT
Where: Lumen Field, Seattle, Washington
TV: Fox

The Buffalo Bills come to Lumen Field on Sunday for a week 8 showdown with the Seattle Seahawks. Both teams are coming off wins and looking to push things more in their favor this week with a win here. The Bills beat the Titans, 34-10, on Sunday and are now 5-2 after two straight wins. They get a tricky out-of-the-way road spot this week against a Seattle team that came out of the gates fast on Sunday in hopes of putting an end to their three-game losing streak, which they emphatically did with a 34-14 win over the Falcons in Atlanta. What’s going to be the right move come this Sunday?

Personnel Issues

Both teams are dealing with some moving pieces in the personnel department, things that should clear up more before Sunday. The most visible for Seattle is DK Metcalf, diagnosed with an MCL sprain after leaving the game late against Atlanta last week. Also, missing both corners last week, Seattle might get some good news on that front, with at least Tariq Woolen scheduled to practice this week. We’ll keep an eye on both of those things later in the week. For Buffalo, Von Miller is still one game away from having served his suspension. WR Curtis Samuel might miss time. In addition, linebackers Dorian Williams and Terrel Bernard left the game in their win over Tennessee last week. The Bills should also look to incorporate more of newly-acquired wide receiver Amari Cooper, who showed some hints of what might be to come last week, connecting with QB Josh Allen on a touchdown.

Seattle: Still Dangerous

They get this at home, which helps with the Seattle offense being palpably better at Lumen Field than when they venture out, last week’s performance and others this season notwithstanding. They get a tough matchup with a Buffalo defense that isn’t easy to assess. More times than not this season, they’ve been very rigid, holding opponents to 10 points in 3 of 7 games and doing well in a few other spots. Only Baltimore has really laid it on heavy against them, but they’ve also been in some good matchups to where you think a high-functioning Seattle offense with Kenneth Walker doing his thing out of the backfield, with a still-deep receiver crew even with Metcalf’s status in the air can maybe do some damage. Tyler Lockett can still produce if given opportunities, and we see Jaxon Smith-Njigba getting better-acclimated to this new offense. Tight end Noah Fant is getting more involved lately. Again, it’s not an ideal spot, but I wouldn’t bank on a Buffalo defensive shutdown this week, either, especially with the personnel issues they have on that side of the ball.

The Flip Side of the Equation

While Seattle stands to potentially receive some good news defensively on the injury front this week, and their performance on Sunday against Atlanta on the road was a surprise, it’s a unit that has taken a big step back in the last month after a nice start in the first several weeks of the new season. With injuries and diminished returns in pass coverage and big-play ability, we saw the Lions, Giants, and Niners pouring it on in consecutive weeks. Last week’s game stopped the bleeding and makes you think maybe they found some answers. Atlanta was projected to have some success in that game offensively and while their own mistakes were a key part of the poor point-output, Seattle was stout at the right times, got some turnovers, and actually managed somewhat of a decent pass-rush. After watching the Bills’ offense labor in spots this season, Sunday’s showing on defense for the Seahawks would give me some trepidation if I were a Buffalo backer this week.

Still, with Josh Cook now healthy and Josh Allen having a possible difference-maker in Cooper, Seattle looks to be pushed this week. Buffalo has won two in a row; however, just prior to that, they had lost two in a row, as things looked to be getting away from them. They skated by the Jets the next week by a field goal, still shaking off the bad form. And while they appeared to hit another gear last week, you wonder how strong a sign that really was with it coming against the Titans. If looking to back Seattle in this spot, I’m not sure how much comfort I’d derive from that, as a Buffalo offensive bonanza is a possibility in any spot, most definitely including this one. Seattle is facing an offense with a dynamic quarterback and lead back, a deep receiver crew now flexing a new tool and an offense that last week showed they have a little ax to grind after some subpar recent weeks.

Take the Points on the Home Dog

While it hasn’t always played out according to plan this season, with some uneven showings at home for the Seahawks, getting a pivotal game like this at home carries some value. And while it’s no rule-of-thumb, Seattle always seems to carry slightly more appeal in the underdog role, where the dangerous side of them can manifest and really pay off in given spots. In four games as favorites this season, they’ve only covered once. I’d look for them to come out swinging as they did last week, and maybe a Buffalo offense that had a renaissance week last Sunday still hasn’t snapped into full gear yet, as a Seattle defense can hold their own well enough to keep this close. I’ll take the Seahawks and the points in this one.

Loot’s Prediction to Cover the Point Spread:

I’m betting on the Seattle Seahawks plus 3 points.