Everyone knows this Seahawks vs. 49ers matchup is going to be a good one. But without fantasy football, we all could use that little extra something to enhance our football viewing experience on Sunday. Which is where prop bets come in.
A full list can be found here on Bovada’s website.
Russell Wilson over/under 200.5 passing yards
As Seattle’s defense has improved, their offense has started to rely less on Wilson to get things done. This has led to a serious decrease in his offensive production, through the air and on the ground.
In two of his last three games, Wilson has thrown for 108 yards or less, making a compelling argument for the under here, which right now sits at -115.
But what cements this one is Wilson’s previous performances against the 49ers. Even in a 29-3 blowout over San Francisco back in Week 2, Wilson only completed eight passes for 142 yards, and in a much closer Seahawks loss in Week 14 he wasn’t able to break the 200-yard mark.
It also doesn’t help that San Francisco’s defense is playing better now than it has all year. Don’t expect much statistically out of Russell in this one.
A Seahawks player will kiss his bicep after he scores a touchdown in the game (+250)
Last week, Colin Kaepernick scored a touchdown and pulled out the Cam Newton “Superman” celebration right in front of the Panthers faithful.
Will the Seahawks try to pull a similar move in his one? With these odds, betting on someone like Richard Sherman or Golden Tate to pull a Kaepernick-like celebration would be wise.
Right now, the “no” sits at -800, but Sherman and Tate are just competitive enough to do something like this, especially if the game is close (as it’s expected to be) and adrenaline is running high.
Also, don’t think Pete Carroll would discourage something like this. Because he wouldn’t.
Over/under 62.5 receiving yards for Anquan Boldin
Boldin had a monster game against the Carolina Panthers, essentially taking the wind out of their defense’s sails with each catch.
But given his past performances against the Seahawks it’s a tough call. In Week 2, Boldin only had one reception for seven yards, but went off for 98 yards in San Francisco’s win later in the season.
The only other time Boldin has played the Seahawks in the last three seasons was with the Baltimore Ravens in 2011, when he had just two receptions for 22 yards.
And despite Boldin having his best season since he left the Arizona Cardinals in 2009, the Seahawks just won’t let him reach the 63-yard mark.
Last week against the New Orleans Saints, the Seahawks shut down Jimmy Graham, and outside of Marques Colston, no one on the Saints had more than two catches. Not to mention that it’s hard to bet against the best pass defense in the NFL. Take the under.
Will Kaepernick or Wilson have more rushing yards?
Kaepernick is the favorite in this one right now, sitting at -2.5 to out-run Russell, and it’s pretty easy to see why.
Wilson’s last two games have been very underwhelming on the ground, rushing for 16 against the Saints and -1 in the last game of the season against the St. Louis Rams.
Meanwhile, Kaepernick has ran for a total of 113 yards in his two playoff games. He has also never run for less than 11 yards in any game this season, while Wilson has fallen below this threshold three times
The 49ers also are calling a good number of designed runs for Kaepernick, while the Seahawks, when they are running the ball, are running with Marshawn Lynch.
In his two games against the Seahawks this year, Kaepernick has run for 118 yards, while against the 49ers, Wilson has just 35 yards on the ground.
Over/under two false start penalties for the 49ers
Oh the classic 12th man-related prop bet. (Other completely made-up prop bets involving the 12th man in the Seattle: Over/under 67.5 Skittles thrown at Lynch in the end zone if he scores. Over/under 16.5 times Joe Buck and Troy Aikman mention “The 12th man” during the broadcast. Over/under 13.5 times Fox cuts away to a graphic of a decibel meter when the Seahawks are on defense.)
Although it’s almost impossible to predict penalties, it would be pretty safe to take the over here with it sitting at even.
The Seattle faithful don’t mess around, and the 49ers have had issues this season with penalties prior to the snap.
According to NFL Penalties.com, the 49ers committed three offensive pre-snap penalties in Week 2 against the Seahawks, and ranked 12th in the NFL in false starts committed this season.
The 49ers have also been effected by crowd noise in other ways, committing the second-most delay of game penalties in the NFL during the regular season, and in the Week 2 loss, had to burn two timeouts to stop the play clock before they could get off the snap.
This is perhaps the biggest home game the Seahakws have played in 20 years, meaning the home crowd will be out in full force. Plus, who doesn’t love to root for false start penalties?