The Arizona Cardinals maintained their status as the NFL’s top team as they improved to 8-1 with a big win vs. St. Louis on Sunday. But in the process, they lost quarterback Carson Palmer to what could very well be a season-ending knee injury. New starter Drew Stanton will literally be thrown to the Lions this week as he leads the Cards against one of their main competitors for the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
Detroit-Arizona will feature a matchup of two of the best defenses this season, but over in the AFC, the high-powered offenses of the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts are set to light up the scoreboard on Sunday Night Football. Check out our preview of that big game here. But first, get prepped for this possible defensive slugfest.
[sc:Football ]Detroit Lions vs. Arizona Cardinals Betting Preview and Prediction
Where: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale
When: Sunday, November 16, 4:25 PM ET
Line: Detroit Lions (+2) at Arizona Cardinals (-2); total: 41.5 – see all NFL lines
Betting on the Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are on quite a roll having won four straight, the last three of which they’ve earned the hard way. Matthew Stafford led an 11-play, 74 yard drive in just under three minutes and threw the game-winning touchdown with half a minute remaining to earn a 20-16 win against the Miami Dolphins. It was the Lions’ third consecutive come-from-behind win in as many games.
[sc:NFL240banner ]Detroit’s excellent defense continues to be one of the best in the league. They held a streaking Dolphins team that had won three-straight games to 16 points and 228 total yards of offense. Through 10 weeks, the Lions lead the league in points allowed (15.8) and yards allowed (280) per game.
However, their offense has not held up its end of the bargain. The Lions haven’t topped 30 points since their 35-14 Week 1 win over the Giants.
Missing Calvin Johnson for the Lions’ games against the defensively-challenged Saints and Falcons didn’t help, but Detroit still couldn’t produce much offense when he did return to the lineup against the Dolphins. It wasn’t due to any rust on Johnson’s part, though, as he looked back up to speed with 113 yards and a touchdown. Opposite Johnson, Golden Tate had his fifth 100-plus yard receiving game in six games.
Detroit’s offense could have an even tougher time scoring against a very tough Cardinals defense. The one bright spot for the Lions is that they should have a decided advantage at quarterback with Matthew Stafford going head to head with backup Drew Stanton.
The Lions’ defense is good enough to make life very difficult for Stanton, which should mean fewer points allowed – and fewer points the Detroit offense needs to score. Lions games have generally been low-scoring affairs this season. The total has gone under in eight of their nine games.
Betting on the Arizona Cardinals
The NFL-best Arizona Cardinals kept rolling along with their fifth win at home and fifth-straight win overall on Sunday, a 31-14 victory over the St. Louis Rams. However, the Cards will have to carry on without quarterback Carson Palmer, who blew out his ACL against the Rams.
It’ll be the second time the Cardinals will play without Palmer this season. Palmer missed Weeks 2-5 because of a nerve issue, which saw Drew Stanton start under center.
While Stanton’s numbers were far from impressive – he completed less than 50 percent of his passes for 176 yards and two touchdowns per game – the most important number by far has been zero interceptions. No turnovers has helped Arizona’s other playmakers succeed in spite of Stanton.
That’s not to say Stanton’s completely incapable of making plays. He made quite an entrance against the Rams when he connected with John Brown for a 48-yard touchdown just minutes after stepping onto the field. He also has arguably more playmakers around him than the Lions, with Andre Ellington, Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd all capable of exploding for big gains.
The magic number Stanton and the offense need to hit is 21. That’s because apart from the Denver Broncos, no other team has been able to score over 20 points on Arizona’s outstanding defense this season. The defense is so good it can even produce its own points, as cornerback Patrick Peterson showed when he took one of his two interceptions against the Rams all the way for a touchdown.
And let’s not forget about the Cardinals’ growing home field advantage. Arizona is now 9-1 in its last 10 home games, with seven wins against the spread.
Writer’s Prediction
The Lions’ (+2) defense keeps Stanton and the Cards offense stuttering while Stafford and Megatron produce just enough offense to win and cover on the road. Create a betting account now and find decent value with dangerous road underdogs.
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