Next up. The St. Louis Rams. One of my favorite tools in preparing for the 2013 NFL football season and to enhance your nfl wagering knowledge is to look ahead at each teams NFL schedule, and evaluate the games they will play.
The Cardinals are coming off being swept by the Atlanta braves, but they are still holding onto first place in the NL Central with a slight 1.5 game lead over the Pirates.
The New York Mets jumped all over the Washington Nationals in the day game of their doubleheader with Washington. They won 11-0 as they smacked around Nats starter Jordan Zimmerman, who is having a great season.
Los Angeles jumped on A’s starter Bartolo Colon in the first but could do no damage after that in losing the first game of their set against Oakland last night.
The Big Ten Conference will have a completely different look next year, but it is the Legends and Leaders once again this season. Wisconsin and Nebraska met in the Big Ten Championship game last season. Ohio State finished the 2012 season undefeated, but they were ineligible for postseason play. Penn State is the only team ineligible for postseason action this year.
Like many conferences, the Sun Belt has a totally different look in 2013. Florida International, Florida Atlantic, MTSU, and North Texas left the conference after last season. Texas State and Georgia State were added to the Sun Belt, so the team now has eight teams.
Conference USA is getting bigger. The conference picked up some new teams and has now gone to an East and West division format. There are 14 teams in the conference as a whole, and each division will have seven teams.
The Mid-American Conference is one of the best “mid-major” football conferences in the nation. Northern Illinois from the MAC went to a BCS bowl last year, and this conference has a history of pulling off upsets against the major conference schools.
Chicago is definitely playing for next year at this point so it is going to be tough to try and forecast them for the rest of the season.
St. Louis enters this weekend set in Hotlanta having just swept the Philadelphia Phillies. Over the course of the three games they gave up just 5 runs and and are on a 4 game winning streak that has them a couple of game ahead of Pittsburgh, who is showing no signs of disappearing.
The Arizona Cardinals endured significant makeover this past offseason and the moves that were made look very good on paper. A new Head Coach, Bruce Arians was brought in to change the culture – he had a very good 2012 season as interim coach of a rebuilding Indianapolis Colts squad.
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2012 Record: 5-11
ATS: 7-8-1
Cardinals Odds to win the 2014 NFC West Division: +2200
Cardinals Odds to win the 2014 NFC Conference: 66/1
Cardinals Odds to win the 2014 Super Bowl XLVIII: 125/1
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Let’s take a look at the numbers:
Perhaps the biggest and most important move was replacing ineffective quarterbacks Kevin Kolb, John Skelton and Ryan Lindley. They were, in a word, pathetic last year and were solely responsible for Larry Fitzgerald’s 71 catch, 798 yards, 4 TD season.
The Cardinals did what they had to do – they went out and got a reliable quarterback to run the show. Carson Palmer may not be the guy he once was but at very least he gives the Cardinals a little legitimacy at the position. He will make Larry Fitzgerald better and if Fitz is better so too will be the offense.
Palmer will also have second year first rounder Michael Floyd to throw to as well as reliable slot receiver Andre Roberts and Tight End Rob Housler who should see some more action in Bruce Arians’ scheme.
The running game replaced Beanie Wells with Rashard Mendenhall. If you are as perplexed by the move – you are not alone. Mendenhall doesn’t seem to be an upgrade at all. Chances are that Ryan Williams and/or Stephan Taylor overtake Mendenhall as the starting back at some point this season.
Arizona’s running game has been a problem in the past and it figures to once again be an Achilles heel of this team.
With Carson Palmer in camp, there will have to be an emphasis on protection. Arizona’s offensive line wasn’t great last year – Cards QBs were sacked a combined 58 times during the year. 2013 first round draft choice (7th overall) Jonathan Cooper will help as will the return of Levi Brown from injury.
The O-line will be better just how much better is the biggest question. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
The Arizona defense was the sole reason this team started 4-0 last season but injuries completely decimated this unit. The Cards surrendered just 15.3 points per game in the first four contests but names like Darnell Dockett and Calais Campbell went down with various injuries at various times during the season.
They will be back healthy this year and will be buoyed by the return of Karlos Dansby who was a difference maker for the Cards before heading to Miami. Dansby could be the rock that anchors this unit on the field and in the locker room.
There are still plenty of questions on Arizona’s defense. Who will start opposite Patrick Peterson at the CB position? Who will play safety after their 2012 starters Kerry Rhodes and Adrian Wilson departed? The Cardinals used a third-rounder on Tyrann Mathieu, who could quickly make his way into the lineup if and only if he can keep his head on straight.
Also who will replace the stellar linebacker Daryl Washington who was suspended for the first four games of the season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy? He also has some domestic assault issues that he still has to deal with when he returns from that suspension!
The Arizona Cardinals, on paper did a lot to improve their on-field product but the fact remains that they play in perhaps the toughest division in the NFL. They play the Seahawks, the 49ers and the Rams two times this year – not exactly an enviable task! They also have to battle the Saints, Falcons, Panthers, Colts and Texans.
Carson Palmer on offense and Karlos Dansby on defense will create a little accountability for this team but it won’t be enough to get to the .500 mark.
Look for a more competitive team to finish 6-10 with a ton of positives coming out of the season – unlike last year!
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The St. Louis Rams have been a team in transition the last few years – they are a team certainly trending in the right direction.
In most circles 2013 is a “Super Bowl or Bust” season for the San Francisco 49ers and why not? They were arguably the best team in the NFL last year with an inexperienced pivot leading the team.
It has been a long time since the football fans in the Pacific Northwest had so much to look forward to in regards to an upcoming NFL season. Yes, the Seattle Seahawks have climbed out of the doldrums and onto the radar in the NFC.
Through the first three games the Tampa Rays have gained on the Red Sox even further and now enter Thursday`s series finale with a chance to take first place the American League East.
The Cincinnati Reds are 7-3 in their last 10 games but they have made up zero ground in their division, the very challenging National League Central.
