Seattle Seahawks (3-2 SU, 2-3 ATS) vs. New York Giants (1-5 SU, 3-3 ATS)
Week 7 NFL
Date/Time: Sunday, October 22, 2017 at 4:25PM EST
Where: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
TV: CBS
By Loot, NFL Football Handicapper, Lootmeister.com
Point Spread: SEA -6/NYG +6
Over/Under Total: 39
The Seattle Seahawks come to East Rutherford to take on the New York Giants in week 7 action. Seattle is facing a long road-trip, but should be rested after a bye week. In their last game before the bye, they were able to beat the Rams, 16-10, in a nice road win. This is their fourth road game in six games and after this, they get back-to-back games at home. They'd love to return home at 4-2 and not 3-3 and to do that, they will need to beat a Giants team that showed some character last week on Sunday Night Football, marching into Denver depleted of personnel and hanging a 23-10 win on the heavily-favored Broncos. Certainly, not all is well at 1-5, but at 3-3 ATS, they are still trying hard despite the disaster that this season has been for a team many picked to make a deep playoff run.
Seattle has won 3 of 4 since an opening-week loss at Lambeau Field. Two of those games have been low-scoring grinds, with the other two being shootouts. Against the Rams, a scoreless affair broke out some in the second quarter with the Rams taking a 10-0 lead. By the end of the half, the Seahawks had tied it, with two second-half field goals being enough to carry the day, 16-10. In three of five games this season, the Seattle defense has given up 17 or fewer points. But also in three games this season, the offense has not scored over 16 points.
After a combined 60 points in their previous two games, the Seattle offense was held to 16 by a good Rams' defense on the road. But this is nothing unusual and even when they were going to consecutive Super Bowls, the offense would often post low-point totals. There are some differences, namely a poor offensive line and partially as a result, a running-game that is anything but bankable. And their brightest spot in the running game, Chris Carson, is now out of action. They will now have to rely on guys like Eddie Lacy, CJ Prosise, and Thomas Rawls—a trio of backs who have been conspicuously quiet this season. Russell Wilson is the one steady constant of this offense. And he has weapons through the air that can shine on the right day—Doug Baldwin, TE Jimmy Graham, surging Paul Richardson, and Tyler Lockett.
The Seattle defense is still a handful, even if they're not quite as dominant as they were in their glory-period of a few years ago. Up-front, there is menace, but more in the pass-rushing department than the run-stopping category where they've been exploitable this season. We'll see how DE Michael Bennett's foot progresses, as he is expected to play this week. At the other end, Frank Clark has been active. KJ Wright and Bobby Wagner are still forces in the middle and with the Legion of Boom still intact, this defense can still be very tough on passing games like the one the Giants bring to the table in week 7.
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You have to hand it to the Giants after they somehow changed a story that seemed to write itself. After losing their entire receiving crew, which just compounded the misery of a supposed-contender starting the season 0-5, they looked like a sacrificial lamb being marched into the altitude of Denver on Sunday night. The defense stepped up in a big way, while a newfound Giants' run-game sparked the offense, paving the way to a 13-point win for a team that was a 13.5-point underdog.
Sunday's win over Denver may not have offered much promise in the shattered passing-game, as losing Odell Beckham, Sterling Shepard (questionable), and Brandon Marshall are too many hurdles to overcome. A receiving crew that looked loaded now starts Roger Lewis and Tavarres King. Evan Engram is an interesting option at tight end. And after not doing that much in his first four seasons in the league, running back Orleans Darkwa has peeled off some big runs in the last few weeks, rushing for 117 yards against Denver. An offensive line that isn't up-to-snuff remains an obstacle to victory and they better be at the top of their game this week against the Seattle defense.
There were some good signs on the Giants' offense on Sunday, but if they are going to somehow turn this thing around, the defense will have to do what it did on Sunday—be really stout and make game-changing plays. The secondary really helped in that regard, with Eli Apple recovering a fumble, while Landon Collins and Janoris Jenkins had picks, with Jenkins retuning his 43 yards for a touchdown. Jason Pierre-Paul will need to be dominant, as he was on Sunday with three big QB sacks. Getting Olivier Vernon back this week would really be a big help. This side of the ball hasn't been that great this season, but they were on Sunday and will need to be moving forward if the Giants want to be so much as respectable.
With the Giants' defense showing good signs, this could be tough for the Seattle offense this week. But the same could be said about the Giants' offense and their prospects this week, hence the total being below 40 points. This is a difficult road spot for the Seahawks, facing a tough defense far from home coming off the bye. I see the Giants being scrappy enough to keep this close in a game that looks like it's going to be a grind.
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