Cardinals vs. Patriots Odds

Patriots Cardinals Football

The Arizona Cardinals are already safely in the playoff picture after clinching the NFC West, but this week they take on the New England Patriots who are desperately in need of a win, as they come in tied with the Jets and Dolphins for 1st place in the AFC East, and also are tied for the final wild card spot as well. Last week the Cardinals got embarrassed on their home field by the Vikings 35-14, while the Patriots torched the Raiders 49-26 on the road. For those of you looking to do some NFL betting on the game this weekend, the oddsmakers have the Patriots 7.5 point favorites at home over the Cardinals.

Now the Cardinals don’t have a ton of reason to come out and play real hard, as the focus is likely turned to just making sure this team is ready for the playoffs when they start in just a few weeks. Now that doesn’t mean they want to get beat up like they did last week against the Vikings, where Kurt Warner threw for 270 with both a touchdown and an interception, and even Matt Leinart got some action in this one. The running game was weak as normal, as the Cardinals ran it just 7 times the whole game for 43 yards. Look for the Cardinals to possibly work the run a little more this week, as its all about going into the playoffs with you best players healthy and ready to go.

The Cardinals defense looked like it wasn’t playing for much, as they let the Vikings offense run and pass all over them. Adrian Peterson had another outstanding day running the football, as he ran it 28 times for 165 yards and the Cardinals allowed Tarvaris Jackson to come in and complete 11 of 17 passes for 163 yards and 4 touchdowns. Now the Cardinals defense hasn’t been something to get real excited about, but they better get their act together real quick cause last we checked the Vikings are not a team you would expect to be throwing 4 touchdowns. Now the Patriots on the other hand can really throw the football, and if these guys aren’t coming to play this week, it could be a big day for Matt Cassel and company.

The Patriots jumped on the Raiders early and often last week, as they built a 35-14 halftime lead. With Matt Cassel playing just days after his father passed away, the once backup quarterback threw for 218 yards and 4 touchdowns last week, including 2 scoring strikes to Randy Moss. The running game got a great performance from Sammy Morris and LaMont Jordan, as the two combined to run for 214 yards and 2 scores, and that wasn’t it for the backs, as Kevin Faulk had 45 yards on the ground and 66 through the air, including a 7 yard touchdown catch in the first quarter. Now if the Cardinals are just waiting around for the playoffs to start look for the Patriots to pile it on this week, as the Pats need every win they can get with just two weeks left in the season.

Now we don’t think the Cardinals are going to just lay down and take a beating in this one, and we expect Warner and company to still throw the football a number of times, as thats what this team has to do to move the football, but the Patriots are really playing for something this week, and this is a unit that can really come to play. Now the secondary will be the focus this week, and though they grabbed an interception last week against the Raiders, its no so easy when you face an accurate passer like Warner. Now the key is getting pressure on the veteran quarterback, and that likely means getting more than 2 sacks like it did last week against the Raiders.

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