Seahawks Favored By 7 Over Rams

NFL News - September 10h, 2009 - Written by John

St. Louis Rams vs Seattle Seahawks - There was a point in time where winning the NFC West was an afterthought for both these teams. A given. The regular season was a cake walk, only needed to prepare them for the real test in the playoffs.

For the Rams, it started in 1999, when new quarterback Kurt Warner led the "Greatest Show On Turf" with superstars like Torry Holt, Az-Zahir Hakim and Marshall Faulk seemingly scoring at will. For the Seahawks it was the later part of this decade when Mike Holmgren molded Matt Hasselbeck into one of the NFL's elite quarterbacks. Both teams appeared in Super Bowls (only the Rams won) in their reign and peppered the Pro Bowl with their players.

Those days are long gone.

Both teams are left staggering after the 2008 season netted six combined between the two.

The Rams were one of the worst teams in the league last year and will be hoping to find some success under new head coach, Steve Spagnuolo. The former New York Giants' defensive coordinator should help improve the defense, already using the draft to upgrade the unit. A year after taking Chris Long with the second overall pick in 2008, the Rams took James Lauriniatis with the 35th pick in the most recent draft.

The Rams will need more consistency from quarterback, Marc Bulger. They still have a solid running back in Steven Jackson and will be looking for him to produce much of the offense this year. However, one of Bulger's main weapons is gone. Torry Holt took a better deal in Jacksonville, leaving relatively unknowns, Laurent Robinson and Donnie Avery, at the top of the depth chart.

Seattle is welcoming back their quarterback Hasselbeck this season after he missed nearly all of last season due to a nagging injury. A healthy Hasselbeck will be a big boost to the team this season, especially after acquiring wide out T.J. Houshmandzadeh via free agency. He should be a nice complement to Deion Branch

These two teams met twice last year, with the Seahawks winning both times. In week three, the Seahawks dominated the Rams, 37-13, in Seattle. Week 15, they met again, this time in St. Louis and narrowly edged out the Rams, 23-20. The Rams have not beaten the Seahawks in over five years, losing the previous eight in a row.

The Seahawks are listed as seven-point favorites, according to BetUS. The Rams were 6-10 against the spread in 2008. The Seahawks were 3-4 ATS at home.

All Betting Lines Above Can Be Found At BetUS Sportsbook

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