Seahawks vs Rams, Monday Night Football: Betting odds, pick & trends

Since December of last year, no team has been more dominant over the course of the regular season than the Seattle Seahawks.

Seattle is 11-1 SU and 9-3 ATS over its last 12 regular season games and was an 11.5-point favorite visiting the St. Louis Rams this Monday night. (One shop had them a full 1.5 points higher at -13, which was a tempting spread for Rams bettors).

The Seattle Seahawks rank second in the NFL in total yards on defense, allowing just 282.1 per game, and third best in the NFL in points allowed allowing just 16.6 points per game. In addition to that outstanding defense, the Seahawks have one of the league’s top offenses, ranking fifth in the NFL in scoring with 27.3 points per game.

At 5-1 SU and 4-2 ATS, the Seahawks are clearly the team to beat in the NFC this season. And the Odds Shark.com picks computer has a 31-18 final prediction.

The St. Louis Rams have one of the league’s worst rushing attacks averaging just 70.6 yards per game, centering their offense entirely on the arm of Sam Bradford. Unfortunately for the Rams, Bradford was lost for the season last week with an ACL injury.

St. Louis will start backup quarterback Kellen Clemens on Monday night.

The total has gone UNDER in five of the last six games between Seattle and St. Louis. That trend could continue if St. Louis struggles on offense under Clemens as many are expecting. Monday night’s total is set at 43.

All signs point to a pretty tough night for the Rams. Not only is St. Louis sending Kellen Clemens and a lackluster running game out there against one of the league’s best defenses, but the Rams also have struggled on defense allowing 26.3 points per game this season.

This NFC West division rivalry has been tilted heavily in Seattle’s favor since 2005; the Seahawks are 14-2 SU and 11-5 ATS in their last 16 games against the Rams.

The Seahawks also own the superior Monday Night Football trend — they are 5-0-1 ATS in their past six MNF encounters, whereas St Louis is just 1-5 ATS in their last six MNF games.

The key to covering the 11.5-point spread for St. Louis is going to be the play of the defense. Last season, St. Louis held Seattle to 20 points in Seattle and 13 points in St. Louis. If the defense can continue that success, the Rams could cover the spread; but they’ll need some help from the offense, too.

Pick: Seahawks | Computer Prediction: 31-18 Seahawks (follow them on Twitter for line updates and injury news)