Vikings vs. Seahawks prediction and odds for NFL preseason Week 1 (Pete Carroll gives Seattle edge)
By Peter Dewey
The Seattle Seahawks open the preseason on Thursday night at home against the Minnesota Vikings and rookie quarterback Jaren Hall, who will likely get the majority of the reps for the team.
#Vikings rookie QB Jaren Hall is going to “bank a lot of reps” over the next 3 weeks in preseason, per coach O’Connell.
— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) August 7, 2023
O’Connell said the best way for a young QB to develop is to give him live game reps, so expect a lot of Jaren Hall in the preseason. pic.twitter.com/3owKZY0E1c
Kirk Cousins and Geno Smith are unlikely to play in this game, which means Hall and Drew Lock should get a fair amount of run in this one. The Seahawks enter the game as favorites, but it’s hard to read too much into that since we don’t know how much the key players for either side will play.
Still, if you want to bet on this game, I have some advice for how to go about it. Let’s break down the latest odds:
Vikings vs. Seahawks odds, spread and total for preseason Week 1
Vikings vs. Seahawks prediction and pick
Seattle is pretty heavily favored in this game, likely for multiple reasons.
1. Drew Lock has more NFL experience than Jaren Hall
A former second-round pick, Lock hasn’t exactly panned out in the NFL, but he’s had his fair share of experiences that have prepared him for a preseason tilt.
The Seahawks backup quarterback should be able to make something happen on offense against Minnesota’s reserves, even if he doesn’t have any of the team’s top weapons in action.
2. Pete Carroll thrives in the preseason
Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll has been elite to bet on in the preseason in his career, posting a career against the spread record of 26-19-1 in the preseason.
He takes on Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell whose team went 0-3 against the spread last preseason.
3. Seattle’s secondary could be a concern
Seattle won’t have rookie cornerback Devon Witherspoon due to a hamstring injury.
Seahawks CB Devon Witherspoon dealing with hamstring injury, won't play Thursday night vs. Vikingshttps://t.co/nfu15nTaBk pic.twitter.com/RkZc9mj0mv
— Around The NFL (@AroundTheNFL) August 9, 2023
Also, standout corner Tariq Woolen is likely out after he suffered an injury in minicamp. That leaves the team a little thin at corner, which means we could see more fringe roster players at that position.
Regardless, Seattle is the team to wager on here.
The extra experience at quarterback and head coach will be key, and Carroll has shown he takes these games seriously with his ATS record.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.