Arizona Cardinals at Kansas City Chiefs, Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, MO
Sunday, November 21, 2010, 1:00 pm EST, TV: FOX
Opening Line: Chiefs -7.5
Current Line: Chiefs -8
Opening Total: 42
Current Total: 44
Money Line: Chiefs -380 / Cardinals +310
After suffering consecutive losses to divisional opponents on the road, the Kansas City Chiefs (5-4) will be happy to be back home at Arrowhead Stadium, where they are a perfect 4-0 this season. It also helps that the Chiefs (-8) will be hosting a team in the Arizona Cardinals (3-6) that has dropped four straight games heading into Sunday’s matchup.
Kansas City head coach Todd Haley will be facing his old team for the first time and should welcome the opportunity to play an offense that has no semblance of the unit that was one of the NFL’s best when he served as offensive coordinator there in 2007 and 2008. Gone from the Cardinals is quarterback Kurt Warner and wide receiver Anquan Boldin, who Haley argued with on the sideline during the 2008 NFC championship game.
Without Warner and Boldin, Arizona’s offense ranks second-to-last in the league in total yards per game (289.1), offensive touchdowns (13) and passer rating (61.7). The Cardinals also made the decision to let quarterback Matt Leinart go before the regular season started, and they have struggled offensively ever since then. Derek Anderson started the season in place of Leinart but was replaced by rookie Max Hall before re-assuming the duties under center.
Haley’s new team has looked good offensively but let him down defensively, particularly in losing the last two games. The Chiefs were lit up by Denver last week in a 49-29 loss, giving up 35 points with just under six minutes remaining in the first half. They allowed Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton to throw for 296 yards and four touchdowns while running back Knowshon Moreno added 106 yards on 22 carries and added three catches for 50 yards and another score.
Kansas City quarterback Matt Cassel enjoyed a career day in trying to rally his team back, throwing for 469 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions. Wide receiver Dwayne Bowe made 13 catches for 186 yards and scored twice, but the team’s running game struggled for the second straight week. Running backs Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones combined for 44 yards on 18 carries against the Broncos after totaling 85 yards on 29 carries between them against the Raiders in a 23-20 overtime loss.
Both teams have seen high-scoring games lately, making the OVER another strong possibility. The OVER is 7-1 in Arizona’s last eight games and 4-1 in the last five for the Chiefs. The OVER is also 3-1 in the last four meetings between the teams dating back to 1998.
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