Week 17 in the 2024 NFL season continues with a showdown in the NFC between the Seattle Seahawks and Chicago Bears. There is nothing to play for in Chicago’s case (except — as usual — for a very high draft pick), but Seattle will be extremely motivated. The Seahawks are 2 games back in the wild-card race but only 1 game behind the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC West.
Here is my Same Game Parlay for the festivities, which get underway at 8:15 pm ET on Prime Video. Also be sure to check out our full Seahawks vs Bears predictions.
Seahawks -5.5 alternate spread (+111)
D.K. Metcalf to score a touchdown (+190)
Caleb Williams to record 200+ passing yards (-160)
Parlay odds: +700
Part of the value in a Same Game Parlay, of course, is that all of its components can be correlated if you so choose. That is some of the plan here, as Seattle receiver D.K. Metcalf scoring a touchdown would obviously work well with a big win by the Seahawks. At the same time, plays that aren’t correlated drive up the overall payout of the parlay. That is the case with backing Chicago quarterback Caleb Williams to throw for a decent amount of yards. But even if he does, there is no reason why the visitors can’t take care of business. Let’s break down each of the 3 legs.
Seahawks -5.5 alternate spread (+111)
Seattle has dropped 2 in a row, but it’s by no means any cause for serious concern. Those losses came against the Packers and Vikings — the latter by just a field goal — and the Seahawks had previously won 4 straight. Make no mistake about it; this team is playing solid football. Needless to say, “solid” is generally more than good enough to beat Chicago. The Bears started the year 4-2, seemingly on their way to living up to lofty expectations. They haven’t won since! They came out of their bye week with a Hail Mary heartbreaker against Washington and never recover. In their 9-game skid, their 3 most recent setbacks have come by margins of 25, 18 and 17 points. It should be a favorable matchup for the Seahawks, too. They have struggled in the ground game, but Chicago’s defense is allowing 134.1 rushing yards per game on 4.7 yards per attempt. Moreover, on the other side of the ball the Bears are missing 2 of their starting offensive linemen. Let’s roll with the ‘Hawks.
D.K. Metcalf to score a touchdown (+190)
Metcalf may not be a scoring machine this season (only 4 touchdowns), but he at least managed to find the endzone last weekend against the Vikings. Games are only getting bigger and bigger since Seattle still harbors playoff aspirations down the stretch, so Smith would be wise to target his most reliable receiver early and often – especially in the red zone. Metcalf has been targeted at least 7 times in 7 of the last 10 outings. He has faced Chicago only once in his career and scored a TD in that matchup. There is no reason why he can’t do it again on Thursday – and he has especially enticing value at +190 odds.
Caleb Williams to record 200+ passing yards (-160)
This doesn’t really conflict at all with Seahawks -5.5, as a negative game script for the Bears will force them to pass. If Chicago is playing from behind most of the way, Williams will be taking to the airwaves. It’s something he has done pretty well of late, anyway. The #1 overall pick in 2024 has exceeded the 200-yard mark in 4 of the last 6 contest, most recently going for 334 passing yards against Detroit this past week. He also pinned 256 on Detroit last month, 340 on Minnesota and 231 on Green Bay. Seattle’s passing defense is solid but unspectacular, so asking Williams to reach 200 shouldn’t be too much.