Arizona Cardinals vs. New Orleans Saints – NFC Divisional Playoff Preview
The NFC Divisional playoffs feature four teams that boast some of the best Quarterbacks in the NFL. All of the teams have incredible Offenses, well rounded and high scoring. This weekend promises some fireworks for sure, but who will emerge, and face each other for the chance to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl?
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Time: Sat., Jan. 16, 4:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans LA
MoneyLine: Cardinals +240 / Saints -290
Spread: Saints -7
Over/Under: 57
The Saturday matchup of the NFC Divisional playoff features 2 of the most potent Offenses in the NFL. They are both balanced and include some of the best talent that the league has to offer. The game promises to be high scoring, and the team that can limit mistakes and penetrate the opposition’s middle of the pack Defenses will be one step closer to playing for the Super Bowl in Miami.
Arizona Cardinals
The Arizona Cardinals enter Saturday’s game fresh off of the highest scoring playoff game in NFL history. The question that remains is – Did their win against the Green Bay Packers provide some momentum, or did the emotion of the game suck the momentum out of the Cards?
On Offense, the Cardinals seem to have a lot of mojo right now. The certain Hall of Fame Quarterback, Kurt Warner threw 5 touchdowns in his last game even without a main weapon Anquan Boldin in the lineup. The Cards figure to get Boldin back this week to provide yet another scary weapon for Greg Williams’ Saints Defense to worry about. We all know that Arizona will get their yards and scores through the air – the suspect secondary of the Saints should offer little resistance to Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. [soliloquy id=”82219″] The X factor for the Arizona Offense will be their ability or inability to run the ball with Beanie Wells and Tim High tower. If these two can somehow have a decent game, it will afford Kurt Warner time to find his real weapons down field. If the Running Backs struggle, Kurt might be spending a lot of time running for his life and avoiding game changing turnovers. Passing won’t be a problem Saturday, the running game might.
Defensively, the Cardinals don’t really scare anybody. They gave up 45 points last week and offered little resistance to the Green Bay Packers Offense. The key will be pressure, and the Cardinals ability to disrupt Drew Brees. The Defensive line has to win the battle of the trenches to keep the running game in check and to keep the Saints one dimensional. If the Cards can do this, they have a good chance of winning the game.
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints ended their 2010 playoff campaign somewhat cold. They lost badly in their last few games of the season and are lucky that they had the bye week to right the ship. A rested and somewhat healthy team, the Saints players used the week to prepare as did the coaches in order to scheme for the Divisional playoffs. The New Orleans Offense not going to be a problem. Green Bay absolutely lit the Cardinals up last weeks and New Orleans is as good or better an Offense. Jeremy Shockey, Lance Moore and Pierre Thomas are all scheduled to play after being banged up late in the season. Drew Brees is Drew Brees. The # 1 total Offense in the league will have a field day on Saturday and if the Defense can make an occasional stop, this could be a blowout.
The Saints Defense started the season like a house on fire. The reason – poor opposition. Late in the season, the Saints were exposed with their secondary struggling and their ability to stop the run questioned. That said, the Saints still have one of the best Defensive coordinators in the NFL. Greg Williams had an extra week to prepare for this game and if he can get his unit to play at 75 % of their potential, the Saints should be fine.
Gambling Trends:
Arizona is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Arizona’s last 8 games
Arizona is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Arizona’s last 7 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of New Orleans’s last 7 games
New Orleans is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Arizona
New Orleans is 13-3 SU in its last 16 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of New Orleans’s last 5 games at home
Pick: New Orleans Saints
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