Game 10: Bills vs. Seahawks

at Sunday, Nov. 28th 4:15pm ET Stats Matchup

The Bills head out to the West Coast for the second of three trips this year. Going out West is always tough for a team and what makes it harder is the Bills abysmal road record over the past two years. The Seahawks lead the NFC West thanks to the Bills win last week over the Rams. The Seahawks are banged up and may be without their starting quarterback Matt Hasselbeck who missed last week's win over Miami with a quad injury.

FACTS AND FIGURES

Matchup:	Buffalo (4-6) vs. Seattle (6-4)
Place:	Qwest Field
Television:	CBS
Announcers:	Don Criqui and Steve Tasker
Spread:	Seahawks by 5½
Series:	Seahawks lead 6-3
Last Meeting:	Seahawks 23-20 in Buffalo (2001)
Seahawks Off:	Rush (5th); Pass (15th); overall (7th)
Seahawks Def:	Rush (8th); Pass (21st); overall (t-14th)
Bills Offense:	Rush (t-22nd); Pass (28th); overall (29th)
Bills Defense:	Rush (6th); Pass (6th); overall (4th)

INJURY UPDATE

The Bills injury list continues to dwindle. Troy Vincent and Josh Reed remain out. Vincent has missed seven games after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his knee. He is likely a week away from returning. Reed has missed three games with a hyper extended knee and will most likely remain out for the Seahawks game.

Seattle has two big injuries. QB Matt Hasselbeck missed last week's game against Miami with a quad injury. He is day to day at this point and may miss this game as well. LB Chad Brown is out indefinitely. He had surgery on Monday to remove loose cartilage from his knee. DE Chike Okeafor sprained his ankle last week but is expected to play. LB Tracy White is out with a hamstring injury. WR Koren Robinson will begin serving a four game league suspension this week.
Bills Daily Injury Page

KEY MATCHUPS

CB Nate Clements vs. WR Jerry Rice:
Clements led a secondary that ended Jerry Rice's record consecutive game with a catch streak week 2 when he was with Oakland. Rice will be looking for a measure of revenge as he fills in for Robinson as a starter. He's coming off a good game last week against Miami.

RB Willis McGahee vs. SS Terreal Bierria:
Bierria is like another linebacker as he plays the run very well and is second on the team in tackles. McGahee will have to watch for him on every play as he tries to get the running game in gear.

WR Eric Moulds vs. CB Ken Lucas:
Moulds will be trying to rebound from a poor performance last week. Lucas is a playmaker and has four interceptions. Drew Bledsoe will have to watch for his ball hawking skills when putting the ball up for Moulds.

LB London Fletcher vs. RB Shaun Alexander:
With the big defensive tackles clogging up the middle, Fletcher will be the main man trying to slow down Alexander. He is the Seahawks main offensive weapon and may be the best pure running back in the league. If the Bills can stop him, they will have a good chance at the upset.

DE Aaron Schobel vs. LT Walter Jones:
Another week, another premier tackle for Schobel to go against. He has had a very up and down season and will need to be on top of his game to beat Jones to get to the quarterback on this day.

RT Mike Williams vs. DE Chike Okeafor:
Williams is having a good season and he will line up against the Seahawks best pass rusher in Okeafor. He leads the Seahawks with 5.5 sacks and may be slowed by an ankle injury.

GAME PLAN

When The Bills Have The Ball: The Bills may try to attack the weakness of the Seahawks defense by putting the ball in the air early and often. This would go against conventional thinking of running the ball a lot to slow down the defense and give the offense an advantage on the road. The element of surprise by going to the air can get Drew Bledsoe's confidence going, which he hasn't had on the road in two years. If they are successful throwing the football that would open up the running game in the second half like it did a week ago against St. Louis.

When The Seahawks Have The Ball: If Hasselbeck can't go, look for them to give the Bills a heavy dose of Shaun Alexander. The Bills will concentrate on stopping Alexander and making Hasselbeck or Trent Dilfer beat them through the air, which won't be easy either.

BILLS DAILY PREDICTION

The Bills are on a roll and matchup well with the Seahawks, especially if Hasselbeck can't go. Defensively, the Bills should be able to keep Seattle in check. Offensively may be the problem since the Bills can never seem to move the ball on the road. If this game was at the Ralph I would have no problem picking the Bills. On the road, I have no choice but to pick against them until they prove me wrong:
Seahawks 16, Bills 6

Season Prediction Record: (8-2)
Season Record Against The Spread: (5-5)

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