Don't Sleep on Seattle

Being a 10+ point favorite in the NFL playoffs is like wearing an Aeropostale screen-printed graphic tee in mixed company, you just never want to be that guy, or in this case, that team. The Saints found this out the hard way and find themselves watching the rest of the playoffs on plasma screens all across the Big Easy. I mean, last Saturday was literally an apocalyptic performance by the Seahawks. Bearing an offense that sputtered to a 7-9 finish in the regular season, the Seahawks rode the "locker room material" 10-point spread and used it to their advantage in a game against the defending Super Bowl Champions. Were you surprised that Marshawn Lynch turned into Walter Payton for a few hours Saturday? How about Matt Hassellbeck finally getting recognized as a winning playoff QB rather than just The View's Elizabeth Hasselbeck's brother-in-law? Everyone knew that the Seahawks could make a competitive game out of it as long as the contest was held at Qwest Field, yet the oddsmakers still wrote off Seattle as 10-point dogs and watched it blow up in the collective face of the New Orleans.

The good news about Sunday is that the Bears get the Seahawks in Chicago this week, far away from the rain-soaked turf of the Pacific Northwest. And, although the Seahawks ousted the Bears in week 6, I would much rather see Pete Carroll's bunch try and defeat the Bears on the cow pasture that is often times referred to as Soldier Field. But, as is always the case, with good news comes some bad, or at least weary news about Sunday's divisional round game this weekend. Once again, the Seahawks come into the game as 10-point takers. Did they not earn any recognition from Vegas after dropping 41 on the NFC South's beloved Saints? Apparently not. Like I said, 10-point underdogs are as dangerous as an abundance of Mexican food before a 3 hour a movie. This is not something you mess around with.

Although the Bears have looked strong coming down the stretch to finish their regular season, the Seahawks have won back-to-back must-win's to keep their 2010-2011 season alive. Granted, they didn't exactly look like world-beaters against the Rams in week 17, but they did look as possessed as Shelley Duvall in The Shining against the Saints. The last positive for the Bears is the Seahawks haven't had a regular starting quarterback with a visible hairline in nearly two decades (Dilfer, Kitna, Hasselbeck), so we have that going for us, which is nice.

As for Pick of the Day, the Pulse Man reached the 45 win plateau last week and is inching closer to betting transcendence with each and every pick. For tonight, the Pulse Man likes Utah covering the 12 points they are getting at home from BYU in the annual Mountain West Mormon battle in Salt Lake City.

Pick of the Day: BYU @ Utah (+12)- UTAH

Record:(45-30-0)

Now I'm done. Rack me

Frost