Kyler Murray finally got a taste of the competitive atmosphere in the NFL, albeit in a preseason game. Will he play against the Oakland Raiders in Week 2 of the preseason? That remains to be seen, but this match is something that has plenty of intrigue and appeal. The Cardinals are +2200 to win the NFC West, while the Raiders are +1400 to win the AFC West.
If you were expecting Nathan Peterman to throw four interceptions just before halftime of Oakland’s preseason opener against the Los Angeles Rams, boy do we have some news for you: he didn’t. In fact, he might just have surpassed Mike Glennon in the battle for the backup quarterback role behind Derek Carr. Against the Rams, Peterman stepped in for the bumbling Glennon and sparked the Raiders’ offense, passing for 66 yards and a touchdown on 9-for-12 completions and added 56 rushing yards on three carries, a bulk of those yards came in a spectacular 50-yard run that fell just short of the end zone. The Raiders are unlikely to get Antonio Brown anytime soon due to a foot issue and something about his love for his old helmet, so J.J. Nelson will have added motivation to further impress the Raiders, as he could get a bump in usage if Brown ultimately misses games in the regular season. Nelson had 42 yards in two catches against the Rams.
The Raiders are 3-0 against the spread (ATS) in their last three preseason games.
Betting on Arizona Cardinals (1-0 Preseason)
It was brief but Cardinals rookie quarterback Kyler Murray looked impressive in his preseason debut. The first overall pick in this year’s draft went 6 of 7 for 44 yards in Arizona’s 17-13 home win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday. Brett Hundley took over most of the quarterbacking duties and went 10 of 14 for 104 yards and a touchdown while also adding 14 rushing yards on a single carry. The Cardinals are clearly very careful on their usage of Murray, so don’t be surprised if he gets the same minimal time under center again in Week 2 of the preseason. These preseason games are also a chance for Arizona to gauge its secondary and how well it could weather the looming absence of star cornerback Patrick Patterson, who’s suspended for the first six games of the season. With a big chunk of the 2019 season cut off Peterson’s schedule, the Cardinals may not be shy in sending him to the field going forward in the preseason.
The Cardinals are 4-1 ATS in their last five preseason games.
