Seattle Seahawks (2-1 SU 2-1 ATS) vs. St. Louis Rams (1-2 SU 2-1 ATS) Week 4 NFL Football, Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, MO 1 PM EST Sunday October 3, 2010 on FOX
by Jason Green of Predictem.com
Betting Odds: Sea -1/STL +1
Over/Under Total: 38.5
In an NFC West match up this Sunday afternoon on FOX the St. Louis Rams host the Seattle Seahawks. The Rams got the first victory in the Sam Bradford era and they now face a Seattle team that currently leads the NFC West. It looks like the Rams finally have the QB that can help turn the team around and while Bradford has looked pretty sharp this season he still has more INT’s than TD’s (5 to 4).
Seattle is 2-1 on the season, but they have not put up great numbers and they don’t rank in the top 20 in the NFL in passing or rushing yards per game. On defense they have been solid defending the run, but opposing QB’s has torched their secondary.
The San Francisco 49ers were favored to win the division this season, but they have started off 0-3 and the NFC West is still up for grabs.
The Rams got a scare last week when their main offensive weapon RB Steven Jackson went out with groin injury, but it is not a tear and he is questionable for this game, but will likely play.
The Seahawks have beaten the Rams in 10 straight games and St. Louis has not been victorious against Seattle since the 2004 season.
Last week the Rams got their first win of the season beating the Washington Redskins 30-16 and the Seahawks beat the San Diego Chargers 27-20.
Bradford had a solid game in the win over the Redskins going 23/37 for 235 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT. He has already found a main target in WR Mark Clayton, who had 85 yards averaging 17 yards per reception in the win over Washington.
The Seattle pass defense ranks 30th in the league and last week against San Diego they gave up 429 passing yards. Look for Bradford to have a great game through the air this week.
Before going out with an injury in last week’s game, Rams’ RB Steven Jackson had 58 yards with 1 TD averaging a solid 5.8 yards per carry. If he can’t go Kenneth Darby will get the call. Last week he averaged 3.9 yards per carry.
Whoever ends up toting the rock for St. Louis will have a tough time moving the chains against a Seattle rushing defense that ranks 5th in the league and only gave up 89 rushing yards to the Chargers last week.
Seattle’s defense came up with 5 turnovers last week, but they cannot count on that happening in this game, so their secondary will have to step up and play well. Expect the DL to pressure Bradford and not give him time to find his targets.
Seattle beat San Diego last week mainly because of the 5 forced turnovers, as in the game the Chargers had 247 more total yards than the Seahawks.
Seahawks’ QB Matt Hasselbeck had a decent game last week going 19/32 for 220 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT. He will be facing a Rams’ passing defense that ranks 24th in the league.
The Seahawks’ rushing offense only ranks 24th in the league and their main guy in the backfield is Justin Forsett, who only has 150 yards in the first 3 games. The Rams’ rushing defense only ranks 25th so look for Seattle to pick up some yards on the ground this Sunday.
The Rams’ special teams will be keeping a close eye on Seattle’s Leon Washington, who scored 2 TD’s on kick returns last week, one for 99 yards and the other for 101 yards.
Seattle is 1-9 ATS in their last 10 road games, 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games as a favorite, and has an Over record of 6-2 in their last 6 road games.
St. Louis is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games following an ATS win and has an Under record of 5-1 in their last 6 games.
In the last 6 games between these 2 teams Seattle has covered the spread every time.
Jason’s Pick to Cover the Spread: I don’t think last week was a fluke, as the Rams are a decent team with a bright future. They will come out and play well at home again and Bradford will expose Seattle’s weak secondary and carry the Rams to their second straight win.
