Seahawks vs. Falcons 2017 picks and predictions: Experts favor Atlanta in Divisional round

The Seattle Seahawks aren’t actually out for playoff revenge when they take on the Atlanta Falcons in the Divisional round on Saturday. They’re simply here to do what every other team wants to do: win. It just so happens that the last time these two teams met in the postseason, the Seahawks suffered a gut-wrenching loss.

Four years ago, Seattle was a young team and came very close to beating the Falcons. The Seahawks took the lead with just 31 seconds left, but the Falcons rallied back with a last-second field goal to send Seattle home with a 30-28 loss.

The Seahawks have found more than their share of success since then, of course. They went on to win the Super Bowl the following season, and are now a veteran team looking for another deep run.

The Seahawks finished the regular season at 10-5-1 and played in the Wild Card round, where they made short work of the Detroit Lions in a 26-6 win. The Falcons, at 11-5 in the regular season, earned the second seed in the NFC and were resting up while the Seahawks were drubbing the Lions.

Atlanta is a much more dangerous team this time around, though. Matt Ryan is a first-team All-Pro this season and he happens to be throwing to another first-team All-Pro, wide receiver Julio Jones. While guys like Antonio Brown and Odell Beckham Jr. will put up a fight, Jones has legitimate claim to the title of best receiver in the NFL.

These two teams already played earlier in the regular season in Seattle. The Seahawks narrowly beat the Falcons by a score of 26-24 in Week 6. It was a close game, and one that saw both Earl Thomas and Richard Sherman covering Jones on a fourth-down pass that went incomplete. Falcons players and coaches thought there should have been a flag and will surely be looking to get Seattle back.

As far as experts are concerned, many think the Falcons will win. Over at CBS Sports, the eight-man panel agrees Atlanta will win. It was more split at ESPN, but the Falcons are still the favorites.

Here at SB Nation, it’s a similar spread.

Of the eight SB Nation experts picking, seven have picked the Falcons alongside the OddsShark Computer.