Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams Odds & Game Pick
The Arizona Cardinals had lost six games in a row earlier this season but now they have won two straight after stunning the Seattle Seahawks on the road in Seattle last week. However, their chances of getting a third consecutive win took a big hit as quarterback Kyler Murray seems unlikely to play this week.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Rams are out of the playoffs after losing late to the San Francisco 49ers this past weekend. Two teams will end their season on Sunday, in what is expected to be the last NFL regular-season game in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before the Rams and the neighboring Chargers move into the brand-new Los Angeles stadium, which is still under construction and is scheduled to open in July of 2020.
The Rams are a touchdown favorite but will they be up for this game?
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Details
- Opening Line: Los Angeles Rams -7.5
- Current Line: Los Angeles Rams -7
- Over/Under: 49
- Location: Los Angeles Coliseum, Los Angeles, California
- Start Time: 4:25 PM ET
- Last Meeting: Cardinals 7 vs. Rams 34
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Overview
The Arizona Cardinals were 10-point road underdogs at Seattle last week but stunned the Seahawks with a 27-13 win in what was surely their best performance of the entire season. The Cardinals’ other four wins in 2019 came against the Cleveland Browns, the Cincinnati Bengals, the New York Giants, and the Atlanta Falcons, all teams with losing records. The win over the Seahawks was the Cardinals’ first win of 2019 over a team with a quality team. Arizona sacked Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson six times, with pass rusher Chandler Jones living in the Seahawks’ offensive backfield the whole game, collecting four sacks. Seattle scored a touchdown on its first drive of the game and did not score another touchdown the rest of the day. Arizona’s defense was physical, disciplined and suffocating. The question is can they bring that over into this week as this has generally been one of the league’s worst defenses this season. They give up 400.5 yards per game, which is the second-most in the NFL.
One of the teams that smoked this defense was the Rams just a few weeks ago when they won 34-7 in Arizona. Quarterback Jared Goff had 424 passing yards while the offense totaled 549. The Rams defense held the Cards to 198 total yards and that was with Murray. How will Arizona move the ball without him?
Last week, the Rams played the San Francisco 49ers tough and had multiple leads against them but eventually fell short. They gave up two third-and-16 conversions to the 49ers on San Francisco’s game-winning touchdown drive. With Jalen Ramsey out this week, will this unit fight or are they going to pack it in? The Rams are heading into a very uncertain offseason, with rumors about staff changes and veteran retirements swirling around the franchise. They’re not a lock here – even against a backup or a banged-up Murray.
Trends
- Cardinals are 6-1-1 ATS in their last 8 games as a road underdog.
- Cardinals are 6-1-1 ATS in their last 8 road games.
- Cardinals are 4-1-1 ATS in their last 6 games following a ATS win.
- Rams are 5-0-1 ATS in their last 6 games after allowing more than 30 points in their previous game.
- Rams are 6-0-1 ATS in their last 7 games after scoring more than 30 points in their previous game.
Bottom Line
The health status of Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray is in question. Murray expects to play, but he did pull his hamstring against Seattle, so even if he does play, he probably won’t be close to 100 percent, and he probably won’t be able to run the way he would prefer to.
The other issue is that the Rams whipped the Cardinals a few weeks ago when the Cards were healthy. What’s going to change this time around? The Rams offense should have a good day here against a feeble Cardinals defense that’s ranked 31st in the NFL. If Murray was halfway healthy, I’d take a shot with the Cardinals but with Murray limited in practices, I’d expect the Rams to win comfortably.
Prediction: Rams 24, Cardinals 13
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Dave Golokhov is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Dave, check out his archive and follow him @davegolokhov.