2023 NFL Team Betting Preview: Seattle Seahawks

With the start of the 2023 NFL and fantasy football season around the corner, I will be going team by team recapping notable moves in the offseason, projecting their outlook for the upcoming league year.I’ll be using the FTN Prop Shop Tool to pick out my favorite bets with the best line available, today covering the Seattle Seahawks. Stay up to date on the action placed by myself and the rest of the FTN crew in real-time with the FTN Bet Tracker. You can also follow @FTNAlerts on Twitter with push notifications turned on. 

2023 NFL Team Roundup: Seattle Seahawks

2022 Results

Record: 9-8, 2nd in the NFC West
Season End: Lost NFC Wild Card game to San Francisco, 41-23

Seattle Seahawks Offseason Summary

Draft

1.05: Devon Witherspoon, CB, Illinois
1.20: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Ohio State
2.37: Derick Hall, OLB, Auburn
2.52: Zach Charbonnet, RB, UCLA
4.108: Anthony Bradford, G, LSU
4.123: Cameron Young, DT, Mississippi State 
5.151: Mike Morris, DT/DL, Michigan
5.154: Olusegun Oluwatimi, C, Michigan
6.198: Jerrick Reed, S, New Mexico
7.237: Kenny McIntosh, RB, Georgia

Devon Witherspoon, CB (1.05) 

Widely regarded as the best cornerback in this draft, Witherspoon played both sides of the field at Illinois and should be a Week 1 starter for Seattle. 

Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR (1.20)

Ohio State’s Smith-Njigba set a Big Ten record in 2021 with 1606 receiving yards despite playing alongside future pros in Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson. Should be fully recovered from hamstring injury that limited him to three games last season. 

Zach Charbonnet, RB (2.52) 

Could play a critical role for Seattle rushing attack if Pete Carroll limits some of Kenneth Walker‘s workload. Charbonnet is a physical runner that rushed for 2,496 yards and 27 touchdowns his last two seasons at UCLA. 

Kenny McIntosh, RB (7.237) 

Per ESPN, the executive director of the Senior Bowl, Jim Nagy, called McIntosh the best value pick of the draft.

Additions

Free agent signings: C/OG Evan Brown, DL Mario Edwards, DL Dre’Mont Jones, DL Jarran Reed, LB Devin Bush, LB Bobby Wagner, S Julian Love

Bobby Wagner,  DT 

Dre’Mont Jones, DL

Jones brings size and a resume as one of the best interior defenders over the last three seasons, totaling 18.5 sacks and 32 quarterback hits.  

Julian Love, S

With Jamal Adams coming off surgery to repair a torn quadriceps tendon, Seattle added Love after a 124-tackle season with the Giants. 

Departures

RB Travis Homer, RB Rashaad Penny, WR Marquise Goodwin, WR Laquon Treadwell, OG Kyle Fuller, OG Gabe Jackson, C Austin Blythe, Edge L.J. Collier, Edge Bruce Irvin, DL Poona Ford, DL Shelby Harrison, DL Quinton Jefferson, DL Al Woods, LB Cody Barton, CB Artie Burns, CB Teez Tabor, CB Justin Coleman, S Johnathan Abram, S Josh Jones, LS Carson Tinker

Rashaad Penny, RB

When healthy, Penny was a very productive back for Seattle. In 2021, he posted three overall RB4 or better performances. 

Travis Homer, RB

Homer provided solid running back depth, but was also an integral piece of Seattle Special Teams unit. 

Cody Barton, LB 

The 26-year-old Barton posted career highs across the board in his first season as a starter. 

Schedule

Week 1 – @Los Angeles Rams (Seahawks-2.5) 
Week 2 – @Detroit Lions 
Week 3 – Carolina Panthers 
Week 4 – @ New York Giants 
Week 5 – BYE 
Week 6 – @ Cincinnati Bengals 
Week 7– Arizona Cardinals 
Week 8– Cleveland Browns 
Week 9– @ Baltimore Ravens 
Week 10 – Washington Commanders 
Week 11 – @ Los Angeles Rams 
Week 12 –San Francisco 49ers 
Week 13 – @Dallas Cowboys 
Week 14 – @ San Francisco 49ers 
Week 15 – Philadelphia Eagles 
Week 16 – @Tennessee Titans 
Week 17 – Pittsburgh Steelers 
Week 18 – @ Arizona Cardinals 

Future Odds 

FanDuel: Wins Over/Under 8.5 (-142, +116) 
Unibet/Second-Chance Bet: To Win the NFC West (+230) 

No team exceeded expectations more than the Seahawks last season, led by Comeback Player of the Year Geno Smith. In his first full season as a starter since 2014, Smith threw for a career-high 4,282 yards and 30 touchdowns, completing a league-high 69.8% of his passes. Seattle finished with a 9-8 record in 2022, logging their 10th season of nine-plus wins in the last 11 years. 

With Smith entering his third year in the system, I’m taking the over on 8.5 wins and like their odds to win the division at +235. Their biggest threat to win the NFC West are the 49ers, who still have question marks under center, likely starting Brock Purdy returning from a torn UCL. 

Best Bets 

DraftKings/BetMGM/Caesars: To Make Playoffs (-120) 
Unibet/Second-Chance Bet: To Reach Postseason as Wild Card (+220) 

The Seahawks punched their ticket into the playoffs last season, narrowly getting in as the final Wild Card team. It was the eighth time Seattle reached the playoffs over the last 10 seasons, dating back to 2012. Since Pete Carroll took over as the head coach in 2010, Seattle has only missed the playoffs three times, and I like their odds of reaching the postseason again in 2023 at -120 odds. Competing in the same division as the 49ers, who they lost to three times last season (including playoffs), their best chance to make it to the postseason is as a Wild Card, priced at +220. 

FanDuel: DK Metcalf Over 900.5 Yards (-108) 

DK Metcalf cracked the 1,000-yard receiving barrier for just the second time last season, catching a career-high 90 passes for 1,048 yards and six touchdowns. In his first season without Russell Wilson, Metcalf was targeted more frequently, leading the team with 141 targets, and carving out a 24.6% target share. Before 2022, Metcalf never surpassed 130 targets in a single season. Although they added target completion in first-round wide receiver Jaxon-Smith Njigba, Metcalf still profiles as the alpha in a surprisingly pass friendly offense. With Geno Smith under center, Seattle posted a +1.5 pass rate over expectation, ranking top-five among all NFL teams in early down pass rate (59.2%). Metcalf has cleared 900.5 receiving in four consecutive seasons, falling one yard short as a rookie, with 900 receiving yards in 2019. 

Caesars: Tyler Lockett Over 4.5 touchdowns (-161) 

Few players have been as consistent as Tyler Lockett, who eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards in 2022 for a fourth consecutive season, trailing only Mike Evans for the longest active streak.With Geno Smith, he saw 117 passes come his way, catching 84 passes for 1,033 yards and a team-high nine receiving touchdowns. Since entering the league in 2015, Lockett has scored 6-plus touchdowns in six out of eight seasons, finding the end zone 8-plus times in five straight seasons.