by Chuck Sommers
Thursday, Aug 19, 2021
Game time: 10 p.m. ET; Aug. 21, 2021
Venue: Lumen Field, Seattle, WA
Where to listen: NFL Game Pass, Westwood One, Sirius XM
Preseason to date
Broncos: 1-0 (last game, won 33-6 at Vikings)
Seahawks: 0-1 (last game, lost 20-7 at Raiders)
Last week’s stats leaders
Broncos:
Passing: Drew Lock -- 5-for-7, 151 yards, 2 touchdowns; Teddy Bridgewater -- 7-for-8, 74 yards, 1 touchdown
Rushing: Damarea Crockett -- 16 carries, 59 yards
Receiving: KJ Hamler -- 2 catches, 105 yards, 1 touchdown; Trinity Benson -- 4 catches, 36 yards, 2 touchdowns
Defense: Pat Surtain II -- 1 interception returned for touchdown
Seahawks:
Passing: Alex McGough -- 6-for-10, 54 yards, 1 touchdown
Rushing: Alex McGough -- 3 carries, 25 yards
Receiving: DeeJay Dallas -- 2 catches, 45 yards
Defense: Cody Barton -- 2 sacks; Ben Burr-Kirven -- 12 tackles
Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Broncos -5, Seahawks +5
BetMGM: Broncos -5, Seahawks +5
FanDuel: Broncos -5.5, Seahawks +5.5
Larry Ness went 3-1-1 last week in the first set of NFL Preseason games. Keep an eye on our Shop Picks page to see what Larry and our other champion handicappers will do this week. Don’t miss that big winner, or any of their premium picks.
Broncos - Seahawks preview
The Denver Broncos will try to keep their strong preseason start rolling when they visit the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on Saturday.
The exhibition rematch of Super Bowl XLVIII will obviously carry different stakes in this matchup, but the Broncos are hoping their offense will carry the production over from a week ago to the Northwest.
Even if it might not be the Legion of Boom anymore, the Broncos will happy to get half the production they got from their signal callers against the Seattle defense. Drew Lock and Teddy Bridgewater combined for nearly 230 yards and three touchdowns last week against the Minnesota Vikings in their convincing win.
The quarterback battle is far from over. Denver is hoping Bridgewater, who they acquired in a trade with the Carolina Panthers in the offseason, will provide some much-needed competition for Lock, the former second-round pick out of Missouri. Lock got off to a great start fresh out of the gates Saturday, throwing an 80-yard touchdown on Denver’s first offensive play to KJ Hamler.
The Seahawks are coming off a rather lackluster exhibition debut against the Las Vegas Raiders in Allegiant Stadium on Saturday. Russell Wilson didn’t play, nor might he the rest of August.
In short, don’t expect the Seahawks to rush anyone of meaning out there this preseason. You’re likely to get a longer look at the likes of Alex McGough and Geno Smith. The former Jets quarterback went 4-for-10 for 46 yards against the Raiders, and even looked worse than Sean Mannion (7-for-11 for 36 yards). McGough’s dual-threat ability might give him an edge if they face a somewhat-filled first-team Denver defense.
Betting trends
The under has cashed in the last four Broncos games when they’ve been the favorite on the road, and is 8-2 in Denver’s last 10 overall as a favorite. Denver is 2-6 against the spread in their last eight as a favorite, as well.
Seattle is 17-7 in its last 24 games following a road loss, and are 32-14 in its last 46 against AFC West opponents.
Prediction
The Denver quarterback battle is going to be hotly-contested for the rest of the way. It might not be a hot moneyline pick, but the Broncos should bring a lot of energy to a Seattle team that just wants to get to September. Broncos win 21-10.
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
