Seattle Seahawks at Washington Redskins (+7.5)*
Both the Seahawks and Redskins enter Monday Night Football with a prolonged period of rest — Seattle was on a Week 4 bye while Washington played on Thursday night. When each team took the field last, their results could not have been more opposite. The Seahawks held off the Broncos while the Redskins were crushed by the Giants. The two games contribute to the large spread.
As stated in the past, this column will always take the points when the home team is receiving at least a touchdown. Part of the reasoning behind any hesitation in Week 2’s pick of the home Jaguars was that a lack of a raucous crowd largely prevents home field advantage from impacting the game. That won’t be the case on Monday night.
A passionate fan base will be in full force as the nation watches on for the second straight week. When the Redskins failed to deliver in Week 4, it was as a division home favorite — a tall task by all accounting — and the loss has a direct carry-over effect similar to the Buccaneers turning their Week 3 Thursday night loss into a win over the Steelers.
The Redskins are the confidence pick for the home touchdown spread on a nationally-televised game. If further proof was needed, the seven-and-a-half points the Seahawks are giving seems to have not scared anyone away. The Seahawks are overwhelmingly being considered an ‘obvious pick.’ Buyer beware.
On the field, itself, it seems inconceivable that the Redskins can find any way to move the football against the Seattle defense. Using a combination blueprint from the Chargers and Broncos (at least, the Broncos of the fourth quarter), the Redskins’ only chance for success would come from an effective passing game that chews the game clock. With neither of those likely, Washington won’t be able to pull off the complete upset in the form of a win, but will lose by four and beat the spread.
