Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals
Time: 3:25 PM CT (FOX)
Spread: ARI -6.5
Total: 47
Betting odds c/o Pincle
The Arizona Cardinals finally seem to have the Seattle Seahawks’ number clearly in sight. The team knocked off Seattle in the first meeting between the clubs this season and will go for a sweep if it prevails as the 6.5 point favorites that NFL oddsmakers have set.
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The Cardinals need to win to have any chance at the NFC home field advantage in the playoffs. It will require Arizona both winning this and the Carolina Panthers falling to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While it does not seem overwhelmingly likely that both events occur, the Cardinals also need this game to make a statement to the Seahawks. The first win was by a count of 39-32.
The Cardinals have the No. 1 offense and No. 5 defense in the league, and few expected the team to be quite this good. Carson Palmer was listed as probable for the game, and it is a near-definite that he and all available starters suit up for this game.
Palmer has thrown for 4,542 yards this season with a 64.5 percent completion ratio. He has 34 TDs on the year and 10 INTs, and has been sacked 25 times on the year. His passer rating is a 106.8, a testament both to his accuracy (2.0 percent INT ratio) and the skills of his receiving corp.
Larry Fitzgerald is expected to be able to go for this one, as the No. 1 receiver for Arizona, a player finally glad to be playing for a competent QB and OL. He has 1,160 yards and eight TDs on the year, leading Arizona in both categories. John Brown and Michael Floyd (questionable) have each caught for 958 and 833 yards, respectively, while combining for 13 reception TDs on the season.
But perhaps the biggest surprise has been Chris Johnson, who appeared washed up and on the verge of being out of the NFL. He has rebounded to amass 814 yards this year while scoring three of the team’s rushing TDs on the year. David Johnson has rushed for 556 yards and has eight TDs on the year. The Cardinals as a team have 16 rushing TDs.
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The Seahawks were dealt an awful blow when Marshawn Lynch for most of the season, but he will return to practice Monday and Seattle will try to work him into the rotation to reach full health for the playoffs. Lynch last appeared against the Cardinals on Nov. 15 when he rushed eight times for 42 yards. Lynch had rushed for 50 yards or more in four of the Seahawks’ first eight games, and the team was 4-4 over that span.
In the wake of Lynch’s absence, RB Thomas Rawls and QB Russell Wilson have been the team’s main ball carriers. Rawls has 830 yards and a 5.6 yard per attempt average on the season, while having scored a team-high four TDs. Unfortunately, the Seahawks are without their replacement RB the remainder of the season, which makes Lynch’s health imperative moving forward.
Fred Jackson will serve as the primary RB with both Lynch and Rawls out, but Jackson has just 100 yards on 26 carries this season and was not intended to be much more than a short-yardage back. The Seahawks could be a world of trouble when it begins the postseason, unless Lynch immediately resumes dominance.
Wilson has rushed for 540 yards from the pocket, and he has three runs for 20 yards or greater, while having helped the Seahawks attain 31 first downs.
Wilson is having another exceptional year passing the football, too. He has 3,827 yards on the season at a 68.1 percent clip with an average or 238.5 yards per game. He has thrown 31 TDs and has eight picks on the year (for an outstanding ratio of just 1.8 percent).
Doug Baldwin has been Seattle’s top receiver with 73 catches for 1,023 yards. He has scored 14 of the team’s 31 receiving TDs.
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