Seattle Seahawks (5-3 SU, 3-5 ATS) vs. Arizona Cardinals (4-4 SU, 2-6 ATS)
NFL Week 10
Date/Time: Thursday, November 9, 2017 at 8:25PM EST
Where: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
TV: NBC
by Scott, Expert Football Handicapper, Predictem.com
Point Spread: SEA -5.5/ARI +5.5
Over/Under Total: 41.5
In NFC West action, the Seattle Seahawks come into Glendale to take on the Arizona Cardinals. Seattle seemed on their way to a win on Sunday, scoring a TD with just over a minute to take the lead against the visiting Redskins. But a late Kirk Cousins drive gave Washington a 17-14 win, sending Seattle to 5-3. They now take to the road to challenge a compromised Cardinals team, but one that is still trying hard and saw their effort pay off on Sunday with a 20-10 road win over the 49ers. At 4-4, they are hanging in there and hope for what would be a big win this week against Seattle.
Arizona was able to win on Sunday with backup quarterback Drew Stanton, getting a big showing from new running back Adrian Peterson, along with some good play on the other side of the ball. The Niners havent won a game this season and the win over them might not mean a ton in the big picture, but the Cardinals have been fairly resilient this season at times, despite a ton of injuries. With David Johnson and Carson Palmer out of action, a huge part of their offense is out-of-action. If they can keep their head above water, it would really say a lot about this team.
Cardinals backup QB Drew Stanton might not be the most-exciting guy and he doesnt always put up impressive numbers. Still, hes now 7-3 as a Cardinals starting quarterback and that isnt by accident. They got a huge performance from Adrian Peterson on Sunday, with a workmanlike 37 carries for 159 yards. Stanton threw for 201 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He hit Jaron Brown and Jermaine Gresham for touchdown throws, as Larry Fitzgerald also was productive on the day. They controlled the tempo against the Niners and looked pretty good. Granted, it came against an injury-ravaged San Fran D and 20 points isnt a bonanza, but they won by double-digits on the road and covered the spread and thats what really counts.
The Arizona defense looked pretty good on Sunday, giving up just ten points to the Niners. They pretty much kept the 49ers in check, got a lot of good stops, along with some good individual performances. It gets a lot harder this week and moving forward, but there were some good signs from a defense that looks to upgrade its form with so many issues on offense. Karlos Dansby picked off a pass and had a sack on Sunday. Patrick Peterson recovered a fumble. They finally got different players chipping in on the pass-rush, with Chandler Jones his usual disruptive self, along with Haason Reddick, Dansby, and Corey Peters getting after the quarterback on Sunday. More of that kind of playmaking would go a long way for the Cardinals in the second-half of the season.
Seattle was nipped at the wire on Sunday by the Redskins and blew a chance to start the season 6-2. It shouldnt have even come down to that. Mistakes were made all day on both sides of the field. They missed two 2-point conversions, dropped multiple sure interceptions, had 16 penalties, missed three field goals, and saw an offense stall out for much of the game. The offense sprung to life at the right time, with Russell Wilson hitting Baldwin for the go-ahead score, but the defense couldnt withstand a furious late Redskins rally. The Seahawks look to make amends this week.
The Seattle offense has been all over the place this season and that can be said about the other side of the ball, as well. Weve seen them put up big numbers and end up in big slogs like they did on Sunday, where they peck and poke and let their defense keep them in games, with something big late to tip things in their favor. Its a dangerous game to play and on Sunday, it didnt work out, with Seattle taking the straight-up loss as 9-point favorites. Wilson threw two picks on the day and wasnt at his most-accurate. They got a few good runs from Eddie Lacy and Thomas Rawls and really need them to produce if the Seahawks want big things to happen this season. Doug Baldwin had a good game and is rounding into form better over the past few weeks. But with 437 yards, 200 more than the Redskins, they didnt get a lot out of it. Expecting them to undermine themselves again this week could be a miscalculation.
Weve seen some iffy performances from the Seattle defense this season. They are certainly a good defense, though a bit off the peak form of a few seasons ago. In the last two weeks, they gave up a ton of offense to Houston, with a stiffer showing against Washington, but with an absence of clutch play with the late winning Redskins touchdown. They got some good performances, with a hefty pass-rush led by Dwight Freeneys two sacks, with Bobby Wagner, Michael Bennett, and Quinton Jefferson all getting to the quarterback on Sunday. Still, the late collapse was a bit concerning and not typical of a good Seattle D.
I think its a mistake to rule out the Cardinals. There are players and coaches on that sideline with careers at stake and one shouldnt expect them to always cave easily. I think they have shown a commendable amount of spirit and should continue to do so. Seattle is a hard team to read from week to week. They could blow out an opponent in a game like this or lose outright and it wouldnt be too shocking either way. I see a resolute Cardinals team hanging in there and covering the spread this week.
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