Giants Cardinals Line

Written by Steve Janus

The Arizona Cardinals will look to get back in the win column when they host the New York Giants this Sunday. Arizona opened the year with a 28-21 win over Carolina, but have lost two close road games against Washington and Seattle the past two weeks. The Giants come in off an impressive 29-16 win at Philadelphia this past Sunday, and are now 2-1 after starting the season with a 14-28 loss at Washington.

Taking a look at the week 4 NFL lines, oddsmakers currently have New York favored by 1-point over Arizona with the total set at 44.5 points.

New York Giants:

A lot of people were discounting the Giants in the NFC East after suffering a bunch of big injuries on the defensive side of the ball in preseason. Teams won’t be overlooking the Giants after their win over the Eagles last week.

The Giants come into this game off their best offensive performance of the season. Eli Manning threw for 254 yards and four touchdowns, including two to backup wide out Victor Cruz who had three catches for 110 yards. Cruz was filling in for the injured Mario Manningham, but New York is expected to have Manningham back in action against the Cardinals.

The Giants also got big games from running backs Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs. Bradshaw rushed for 86 yards on 15 attempts and caught five passes for 53 yards and a touchdown. Jacobs had 61 yards of total offense, including a 40 yard touchdown catch that put the Giants up 7-0 early.

New York should be able to build off that performance against an Arizona defense that has not looked all that great after three games. The Cardinals are 25th against the pass (275 ypg) and 27 against the run (122.7 ypg).

The Giants defense has played very well when you consider all the injuries they have had to deal with. A big reason for that has been the outstanding play of second-year defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, who leads the team with 4.5 sacks. The front four could get a big boost this week, as Osi Umenyiora is expected to make his season debut.

Arizona Cardinals:

The Cardinals came into the season believing they did enough in the offseason to give them a great shot at winning the NFC West, but a loss against New York would really hurt their chances.

Arizona traded for starting quarterback Kevin Kolb in hopes that he could jump start an offense that averaged just 18 points a game in 2010. Kolb and the offense had really looked good in the first two weeks, but last week’s 10-point performance against Seattle is a bit of a concern. Kolb has thrown for at least 250 yards in each game this season, but his two interceptions really hurt his team last week.

One player that could really have a big game this week is Pro Bowl wide out Larry Fitzgerald. New York’s secondary has been decimated with injuries, and will likely have to use two defenders just to try and slow down Fitzgerald in this game. The Giants are allowing 255 passing yards a game in 2011.

Arizona was without starting running back Beanie Wells against the Seahawks, who is dealing with a hamstring injury. Wells had rushed for 183 yards and two touchdowns in the first two games. He is expected to play this week, but it’s hard to rely on backs who are dealing with hamstring issues.

One thing to watch in this game is how Arizona handles the pressure of the Giants defense. Kolb has been sacked 8 times already this season. If New York is able to get to Kolb, it is going to be very hard for the Cardinals to win this game.

Betting Trends:

New York is 14-6 ATS in their last 20 games as a road favorite.

Arizona is 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games as a home underdog.

If you are looking for some expert advice on who to take this week. Be sure to stop back and check out what Steve Janus has to offer in week 4 of the NFL.

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