NFL Lines & Expert Pick for Week 13: Philadelphia at Seattle

NFL Lines & Expert Pick for Week 13: Philadelphia at Seattle

Written by on December 1, 2017

Two NFC playoff contenders square off Sunday night when the Philadelphia Eagles (10-1) visit the Seattle Seahawks (7-4). The Eagles would clinch the NFC East with a win in this game, while the Seahawks are a game behind the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC West as well as the Carolina Panthers in what promises to be a crowded wild card race. The Seahawks are missing both Earl Thomas and Richard Sherman in their secondary, but they still knocked off the San Francisco 49ers last week, 24-13. They have a much tougher task on their hands with the Eagles, who routed Chicago last week, 31-3. Check out our NFL lines preview of this prime time clash.

NFL Lines & Expert Pick for Week 13: Philadelphia at Seattle

When: Sunday, December 3, 2017, 8:30pm ET Where: CenturyLink Field, Seattle TV: NBC Radio: Westwood One Live Stream: NFL Live NFL Lines: Philadelphia (-6), O/U 47

Weather Forecast

  • Mostly Cloudy: 4°C/40°F
  • Humidity: 87%
  • Precipitation:7%
  • Wind: 3 mph ESE
  • Cloud Cover: 61%
  • Type of Stadium: Open

Why should you bet on the Eagles?

The Eagles have a nine-game winning streak coming into this game, but even more impressive than the length of the streak has been the margin of victory. In each of their last four wins, they have prevailed by 23 points or more. The defense was the real story against Chicago as the Eagles limited the Bears to 140 yards of offense — and just six yards in the running game. The Bears came in ranked fifth in the NFL in rushing yards per game. They also have a dynamite pass rush and a pair of shutdown corners, making it hard on opponents to move the ball at all. The offense has taken off big-time in Carson Wentz’s second season leading the Eagle attack. He went 23 for 36 for 227 yards and three scores against Chicago, giving him 28 touchdown passes on the year against just five interceptions. His QBR of 104 ranks fourth overall among starting quarterbacks. He gets to drop back behind a solid offensive line and find receivers in a depleted secondary, while his tailback combo of Corey Clement, Jay Ajayi and LeGarrette Blount is one of the best trios in the NFL.

Why should you put your money on the Seahawks?

Seattle did stand tall on defense despite all of the injuries in their secondary last week. They limited the 49ers to 280 yards of total offense and sent quarterback C.J. Beathard to the sidelines with an injury. The Seahawks will have to try some creative pass rush packages to get to Wentz, so he won’t have time to sit back there and carve up their attack, but they’ll also have to stay home against the running game. They will be playing in front of the vaunted 12th Man at CenturyLink Field, but that wasn’t enough to stop Atlanta until the second half, and by then it was too late to come back. Can things go differently on defense against Philadelphia? Are the Seahawks a safe bet in Week 13? The Seattle offense has played well this season — thanks to Russell Wilson. He has thrown for 3,029 yards, picking up 23 touchdowns against eight interceptions. His QBR of 95.2 is 13th overall among starting quarterbacks. The running game has been average, gaining 102.9 yards per game (20th overall). However, Thomas Rawls and Russell Wilson have both been adept with their feet at crucial moments. The burden on offense this week will really fall on Wilson’s arm as the running game has not gained much traction for any of the Eagles’ opponents this season.

Latest NFL Lines Trends

 
  • Philadelphia is 5-0 ATS in the last 5 games
  • Philadelphia is 5-0 SU in the last 5 games
  • The total went OVER in 13 of Philadelphia’s last 17 games on the road
  • Seattle is 1-3-1 ATS in the last 5 games
  • Seattle is 6-2 SU in the last 8 games
  • The total went UNDER in 5 of Seattle’s last 7 games
 

Expert Pick and Final Prediction

The Seahawks tend to get a little overconfident after a win (only covering the spread three times in their last 12 games after a victory). They also have failed to cover the spread against any of their last six home games against a team featuring a winning record on the road. I would still pick the Seahawks if they had Sherman or Thomas in the secondary, but missing both of them will be a huge problem to overcome. I predict a final score of Philadelphia 30, Seattle 20