Seahawks Listed as 3-Point Underdogs vs Packers in Opening Lines for Divisional Round

• The Seattle Seahawks beat the Philadelphia Eagles 17-9 in their Wild Card matchup
• The Seahawks are now 8-1 in road games this season
• The Packers registered just three victories over teams with a winning record: the Minnesota Vikings (twice) and the Kansas City Chiefs, who were without Patrick Mahomes

The Minnesota Vikings upset the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, which means that the Seattle Seahawks will now have to go to Green Bay for the Divisional Round of the playoffs.

The Packers opened as a three-point favorite and the line has already moved to four. Is that all the movement we’ll see? Let’s take a closer look.

Seattle Seahawks vs Green Bay Packers Odds

Odds taken Jan 5; the spread opened as GB -3

Seahawks Turn Aside Eagles In Wild Card Round

The Seahawks had a relatively easy job in front of them on Sunday but they still took care of business. Facing an Eagles squad that entered the day banged up, things got even easier for them when Carson Wentz was forced out of the game.

https://twitter.com/KyleNYY/status/1213983311237914625

As a result, the Eagles offense was completely handcuffed. They finished the day with just 282 total yards while going 3-for-11 on third downs. They failed to even score a touchdown.

As for the Seahawks, it wasn’t the prettiest game, but Russell Wilson’s 325 passing yards led the way to the win.

Packers Run Defense Will Be Tested

The Packers have had a week off to rest and recharge, which is quite important at this time of year. They’ll now return in the Divisional Round to host the Seahawks.

One important matchup in this game will be the Packers run defense against the Seahawks rush offense, which ran the ball the third-most times in the NFL this season.

The Packers ended the year on a five-game winning streak and still gave up 113 rushing yards per game in those contests. That’s actually an improvement for them as they readily gave up much bigger numbers throughout the year. They allowed 4.7 yards-per-carry, which was tied for the seventh-most in the NFL.

As the t-shirts say: The North is Not Enough.

The #Packers have a lot to play for vs. the Lions in Week 17 ⤵️ https://t.co/qiPBV9jtup

— Green Bay Packers (@packers) December 26, 2019

The good news for them is that the Seahawks backfield has been decimated with Chris Carson, Rashaad Penny and CJ Prosise all out. That trio combined for 1,672 rushing yards and 14 total touchdowns this season. Not having to face them is a big boost for the Seahawks.

Which Way Will The Line Move?

The Packers have opened as a three-point favorite and the line now sits at four. But I don’t see this line getting much higher. If anything, it will work in the direction of the Seahawks and come back down to a field goal.

The Seahawks are an excellent road team as they’ve now won eight of their nine away games this season. They’re viewed as a quality team in the NFC, whereas the jury is still out on the Packers. Sure, they were 13-3 this season but last we saw them, they nearly lost to the hapless Detroit Lions in Week 17.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYVzfagfvWM

Green Bay notched three victories against teams with a winning record this season. The Packers beat the Kansas City Chiefs, who were without Patrick Mahomes, and beat the Minnesota Vikings twice.

All of their other wins came against teams who finished the season .500 or less. They also lost 37-8 to the San Francisco 49ers, a team the Seahawks played very tough in both meetings (winning once).

If you like the points, take the four while you can!