Everything is fine for the Arizona Cardinals whenever Carson Palmer is on the field. With the veteran signal-caller back on top of things, the Cardinals were able to take out the visiting New Orleans Saints on Sunday. Now, the Cards aim to notch their first road victory of the season when they pay Jay Cutler and the Chicago Bears a visit this coming Sunday. The Bears are looking to bounce back in Week 2 after tasting defeat at the hands of the Green Bay Packers.
Read on for more about this matchup. For more Week 2 game preview, you can click here for Broncos vs. Chiefs and here for Rams vs. Redskins.
[sc:Football ]Arizona Cardinals vs. Chicago Bears Preview
Where: Soldier Field, Chicago
When: Sunday, September 27, 1:00 PM ET
Line: Arizona Cardinals (-2.5) at Chicago Bears (+2.5); total: 44.5 – see all NFL lines
TV Broadcast: Fox
Betting on the Arizona Cardinals
[sc:NFL240banner ]Arizona sure loves seeing Carson Palmer back on the field. Back from a long layoff due to a torn ACL, Palmer showed little rust and threw for 307 yards on 19 of 32 passing and three touchdowns to help the Cards score a 31-19 win over Drew Brees and the Saints. Up next for Arizona is a road game in Chicago. The Cards are 6-4 ATS in their last 10 games away from home.
Against the Saints, Arizona leaned on a balanced offense that also drew 120 yards from its backfield. Andre Ellington rushed for 69 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries. He could’ve added more to his numbers but the third-year running back was carted off the field after an apparent knee injury.
It would be a big blow to Arizona’s offense if Ellington would be forced to miss the game against Chicago. The Cards can’t expect the same production from a way-past-his-prime Chris Johnson, who had 37 yards on 10 tries in the New Orleans game.
That should leave a heavier workload for Palmer and his receiving crew, which includes Larry Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald didn’t score a touchdown on Sunday but led the team with 87 receiving yards on six catches.
As for the Cards’ defense, it will have to find a way to keep Matt Forte on a leash. Forte tore through Green Bay’s defense on Sunday and almost single-handedly carried the Bears into an upset win. Arizona, on the other hand, held New Orleans down to only 54 rushing yards.
Containing Cutler, meanwhile, should be an easier task for the Cards’ defense than keeping someone like Drew Brees in check. Despite the departure of cornerback Antonio Cromartie in the offseason, the Cards’ secondary remains sturdy with the pair of Patrick Patterson and Jerraud Powers lining up across one another.
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Betting on the Chicago Bears
Not many people expected Chicago to be as competitive as it was in the team’s 31-23 loss to Green Bay on Sunday. But by putting a scare on Aaron Rodgers and company, maybe it’s time to put some more faith in the Bears.
The Bears play their second game in a row at Soldier Field in Week 2 against a Cardinals team, which they last fought in 2012. The Bears are 4-1 SU and 2-2 ATS in their last four meetings with Arizona.
Matt Forte was the biggest factor why the Bears managed to keep in step with the Packers. The running back rushed for 141 yards and scored a touchdown on 24 carries against a Packers defense that seemed to have no answer to him. Forte, however, failed to get help from the Bears’ aerial attack. Jay Cutler completed just 18 of 36 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown with a pick. Cutler showed some athleticism, though, by racking up 31 rushing yards on four carries.
With Cutler continuing to play like the accident-waiting-to-happen that he was in previous years, there’s extra pressure on Forte and the Bears’ backfield to step up their game.
Aside from Forte, the Bears’ defense also deserves some props (even in a loss), as it was able to limit Green Bay to just 322 total yards. That said, there are some issues Chicago has to fix on the defensive side, particularly with the pass rush, which failed to record a sack against the Packers.
Writer’s Prediction
Chicago (+2.5) wins, 23-21.
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