The Denver Broncos are home underdogs on Thursday night, and the national writers who have posted picks agree with the sportsbooks. Seattle is a 2.5-point favorite at Mile High, and every pick that has posted so far takes the Seahawks. The Broncos’ offense, which gained 224 yards in Sean Payton’s first game back calling plays, is the reason most of them give.
The margins are modest, though. The posted scores have Seattle winning by five to 10 points, and the total has dropped from 43.5 to 40.5 this week. Oddsmakers expect a low-scoring game, and so do the experts.
CBS Sports
Seahawks, 3-0
John Breech has the widest margin at 27-17. He pointed to Denver’s slow starts, writing that the Broncos have scored 23 first-half points all season. He isn’t sold on Seattle’s quarterback, either. “I don’t quite trust Sam Darnold against the Broncos’ defense,” Breech wrote. He also framed the game around the September flare-up between Mike Macdonald and Payton. Pete Prisco has it 23-17, and Tyler Sullivan picked Seattle 24-19. “Seattle takes a tough road game,” Prisco wrote, noting the Seahawks are on a short week after a loss to San Francisco.
ESPN
FPI: Seahawks by 1.4
ESPN’s Football Power Index is the most generous to Denver. The model gives Seattle a 55% chance to win and projects a 1.4-point margin, a tighter game than the betting line suggests. It is also the closest any of these projections gets to calling it a toss-up.
Sports Illustrated
Peter Dewey: Seahawks moneyline
Dewey passed on the spread and took Seattle straight up. “I’ll forget the points on Thursday night and simply take Seattle to win,” he wrote. Seattle’s defense has allowed the fewest yards in the league, and no opponent has topped 301 against it.
Bleacher Report
Kristopher Knox: Seahawks
Knox also sided with Seattle. “The Broncos, meanwhile, haven’t looked as formidable as they did last season,” he wrote. Denver ranks 26th in scoring at 19.4 points per game and 27th on third down. There has been plenty of concern locally about Bo Nix, too, and his struggles against the Chargers didn’t help.
Not one of the picks above trusts the Broncos to score enough. The case for Denver is the other side of the ball. Seattle has eight giveaways in its last three games, and the Broncos turned three takeaways into 13 points last week. Bo Nix also has three game-winning drives this season. Kickoff is 6:15 p.m. MT on Prime Video.
More on the Denver Broncos
- J.K. Dobbins vs. Seahawks Week 6: Four Expectations for Broncos RB
- 3 Reasons the Broncos Will Beat the Seahawks, and 2 Reasons They Won’t
- Poll of the Day: Who Wins Seahawks-Broncos on ‘Thursday Night Football?’
- Is There Bad Blood Between Sean Payton and Mike Macdonald? 5 Broncos-Seahawks Things to Know
