Chargers at Seahawks Odds, Picks and Predictions for Week 4
An alarmingly winless Chargers team makes the short trip to battle the defending champion Seahawks on Sunday, a game that undoubtedly profiled as much more of a marquee matchup back when the schedule was released in the spring.
Seattle is looking to bounce back from its own Week 3 misfortune, as Mike Macdonald's squad suffered a road upset at the hands of the Commanders. With two proud teams aiming for wins, let's dive into a pair of bets for the intriguing interconference clash.
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Chargers vs Seahawks Betting Odds
*Best lines at time of writing listed
- Point spread: Chargers +7.5 (-120 Caesars), Seahawks -7 (-112 BetRivers)
- Moneyline: Chargers +295 (FanDuel), Seahawks -350 (Fanatic)
- Totals: Over 42.5 (-110 BetMGM), Under 43.5 (-120 FanDuel)
In keeping with the theme of how awry matters have unexpectedly gone for the Chargers, Los Angeles is a moneyline underdog to the extent one would expect the likes of the Titans and Dolphins to be. The touchdown spread is also eye-opening to a slightly lesser degree, but it's reflective of a combination of the Bolts' struggles and the fact the Seahawks can be a dominant home team that boasted the NFL's third-highest average scoring margin (+10.4 points) in that split last regular season.
The projected total is notably very modest, the third lowest of Sunday's slate (including the London Game and SNF). That number seems to be very heavily influenced by the Chargers' significant offensive struggles thus far under new coordinator Mike McDaniel, as Los Angeles checks in averaging the fourth-fewest points per game (14.7) through three weeks. The Seahawks' defense did spring some leaks in Week 3 against Washington, but that seemingly isn't making much of an impact on the line.
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Chargers vs Seahawks Week 4 Picks
The Chargers' early-season swoon has certainly been one of the biggest surprises around the league, considering the team's body of work during Jim Harbaugh's first two years at the helm and the elevated expectations the team came into the campaign with after back-to-back 11-6 seasons.
While the hiring of McDaniel as coordinator was often cited as one of the reasons for the positive buzz surrounding the Bolts, but Justin Herbert and the rest of his weapons have instead mostly floundered in the new system. Herbert has completed just 59.1 percent of his passes and posted a 3:4 TD:INT over the Chargers' season-opening losing streak, while Omarion Hampton has averaged just 3.9 yards per carry after coming into his second season expected to fully blossom into one of the league's top backs after a highly promising rookie season.
Los Angeles' offense sputtered to the extent that they could only manage 14 points apiece in alarming stumbles against the Cardinals and Raiders, and they then mustered a slightly only less paltry 16 points in the Week 3 road loss to the Bills. Desperation has ratcheted up another notch this week, but the matchup against a Seahawks defense on its home field certainly paints yet another dim picture.
While the Seahawks did indeed underachieve in their own right on the road in Week 3 against the Commanders, Sam Darnold looked effective in his return from a glute injury by throwing for 379 yards and four touchdowns. Darnold is now back on his home turf and another week removed from the injury, although one challenge he'll have to navigate is the absence of rookie running back Jadarian Price due to a chest injury.
Nevertheless, the Chargers have given up 349.3 total yards per game, and Darnold still has access to arguably the No. 1 receiver in the league in Jaxson Smith-Njigba. JSN has opened the season seemingly intent on besting last year's otherworldly 119-1,793-10 line through 17 regular-season games, as he's already recorded 27 catches for 405 yards and six touchdowns while recording at least eight grabs in each game.
Despite Seattle's status as heavy favorites, there should be a good bit of fight from the Chargers given the dire straits their season is already in, so our same-game parlay will utilize the Alt Spread feature to give LA plenty of cushion and also bank on the two teams eclipsing a very manageable alternate total.
We'll then count on JSN keeping up his strong start to the season and record at least seven catches for the 17th time in the last 24 regular-season and postseason games dating back to the start of last season.
Chargers at Seahawks Best Bets:
- SGP: Chargers Alt. Spread +15.5 and Over Alt. Total 40.5 Points (+115 on FanDuel)
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba Over 6.5 Receptions (-134 on BetRivers)
