Arizona Cardinals vs New Orleans Saints 10/2719 NFL Betting Odds and Prediction

The Arizona Cardinals travel to the Mercedes Benz Superdome to take on the New Orleans Saints in Week 8 of the 2019 NFL season.

Both the Cardinals and Saints enter this matchup on a roll. Arizona defeated the New York Giants 27-21 for their third straight win of the season. Meanwhile, the Saints are coming off a huge win over the Chicago Bears in Chicago. New Orleans’ 36-25 triumph last week was their fifth consecutive victory.

Exceeding Expectations

After a slow start, the Arizona Cardinals have exceeded expectations with their 3-3-1 SU record after seven weeks. The tandem of new head coach Kliff Kingsbury and top overall pick quarterback Kyler Murray has helped the team win their last three games. If the Cards can sustain this pace, they could be in contention for a wild card spot.

Murray looked mediocre the last time out but running back Chase Edwards had a monster game with 125 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns against the Giants. But it hasn’t been only their offense which has produced this turnaround. The Cardinals’ defense has looked solid in the last three weeks and last week, Chandler Jones recorded four sacks and a forced fumble.

The Cardinals rank 19th in passing at 230.6 yards per game. They are 11th on the ground with an average of 127.4 rushing yards per contest. Arizona is scoring 23.0 points per game while they are allowing their opponents to score 27.4 points per game this season.

Getting Drew Back

The New Orleans Saints have won five games in a row and they have done so with back-up Terry Bridgewater as their starter. The veteran quarterback has impressed with 9 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions as the New Orleans starter in the past five games. But if that isn’t enough, the Saints may be getting Drew Brees back on Sunday after their starter missed the past month with a thumb injury.

New Orleans played without star running back Alvin Kamara last week but his absence didn’t matter as the Saints produced a total of 424 yards of offense, including 151 on the ground, against the dreaded Chicago defense. Defensively, New Orleans held Chicago to just four first down until the fourth period when the Bears scored two garbage touchdowns to make the score respectable.

The Saints are 13th in the NFL in passing with an average of 245.0 yards per game. They are ranked 15th on the ground with an average of 111.0 rushing yards per contest. New Orleans is scoring an average of 23.1 points per game while giving up 21.0 points per outing this season.

Who Wins?

Arizona is 5-12-1 SU in their last 18 games played. The Cardinals are 2-1 SU in three road games played this season. New Orleans is 5-0 SU in their last five games played. The Saints are 17-3 SU in their last 20 games played at home. Head to head, the Saints are 10-5 SU in their last 10 games played against the Cardinals. New Orleans is also 7-1 SU in their last eight home games against Arizona.

Arizona has suddenly started winning games and while it’s easy to credit Kliff Kingsbury, Kyler Murray and the rest of the offense for this three-game winning streak, don’t forget that their defense has also done their share. Against the Giants last week, they sacked Daniel Jones eight times and allowed New York just 263 yards of offense. They are 3-0 SU in their last three games including two wins on the road.

However, Arizona is facing a New Orleans team that may be hotter than them right now. The Saints have won five in a row and they have done so without starting quarterback Drew Brees who has missed the last month with a thumb injury. Brees started practicing last week and may return against the Cardinals. But even if he doesn’t Terry Bridgewater has been terrific in his place, throwing nine touchdowns with only two interceptions as the starter.

New Orleans has lost just thrice in their last 21 games played at home while the Cardinals have lost four in a row in New Orleans. Both these teams are on a roll right now. But the Saints are hotter and they have the better defense. Arizona is in the bottom 5 in total yards allowed per game. New Orleans is a Top 10 team in that department. Whether it’s Brees or Bridgewater, I think the Saints will also produce more points on offense.

Prediction: New Orleans Saints

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Other Bets to Make

Arizona is 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games played. The Cardinals are 5-1 ATS in their last six games played on the road. New Orleans is 5-0 ATS in their last five games played. The Saints are 2-1 ATS in three home games played this season and 4-1 ATS in their last five games against the NFC Conference. Head to head, the Saints are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games played against the Cardinals. New Orleans is also 3-0 ATS in their last three home games against Arizona.

The Saints have outscored the Cardinals by an average of 4.9 points per game in their last 10 meetings and 6.33 points per game in their last three meetings. Seven out of their last 10 head to head meetings were decided by 10 points or more. At first glance, this looks like a letdown game for the Saints after their big win over the Bears last week. However, the Saints have lost by an average of 19.75 points in their last four games at the Mercedes Benz Superdome. I like the Saints to win by double-digits here.

Prediction: Saints -9.5

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The total has gone over in three out of the last five games played by the Cardinals. The over is 4-2 in Arizona’s last six games against the NFC Conference and the under is also 7-0 in their last seven games against the NFC South Division. The total has also gone over in three out of the last five games played by the Saints. New Orleans has seen the total go over in two out of their last three home games played. Head to head, the total has gone over in six out of the last seven games between these two teams.

These teams have combined to score 48.9 points per game in their last 10 games played and 59.0 points per game in their last three meetings. The Cardinals have gone over the 48 total in four out of their last five games including the last three. The Saints have seen their total go over 48 points in three out of their last five games played. The total has gone over in four out of the last six games of the Saints when they are the NFL betting favorites. Arizona allows the 8th most passing yards per game this season. That’s not good against either this 2019 Terry Bridgewater or the returning Drew Brees. I expect the Saints to score at least 30 points here and the Cardinals will do their share to help the total breach 48 points.

Prediction: Over 48

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