The big question is whether or not the Cards have anything left in the tank for their visit to New Orleans this weekend.<\/p>\n
Arizona Cardinals @ New Orleans Saints<\/strong><\/p>\n Saturday, January 16, 4:30 p.m. ET Let\u2019s start with the easy decision:\u00a0pick the over. <\/em>It doesn\u2019t matter if the total is 80 points! When Kurt Warner is on, he\u2019s as unstoppable as any quarterback in the game. It was alarmingly easy for him to drive on Green Bay\u2019s NFC-best defense last week; without Anquan Boldin in the lineup, Warner was an unbelievable 29\/33 for 379 yards and five touchdown passes. The man is absolutely locked in and will enjoy another indoor game at the Louisiana Superdome this weekend.<\/p>\n The Saints are known for Darren Sharper and their ball-hawk unit, which amassed 29 interceptions this season. But guess what: the Packers picked off an NFL-best 30 passes this year and that didn\u2019t help them at all against Warner. Also, the Saints\u2019 \u201cD\u201d worsened as the season progressed and allowed 235.6 passing yards per game. That ranked them 26th<\/sup>, lower than any other playoff team and behind the St. Louis Rams. Arizona doesn\u2019t run the ball too well but Chris \u201cBeanie\u201d Wells dramatically improved down the stretch; his yards per game improved every month from September to December, rising from 23.7 to 71.3.<\/p>\n Arizona\u00a0will <\/em>score major points on the Saints. However, if Green Bay\u2019s excellent offense could gouge Arizona for 45 points on the road, the Saints\u2019 No. 1 offense should have a field day at home. Sure, New Orleans seemed to lose focus down the stretch, but Drew Brees has played in big games before. Straight up, I think the Saints win this game. The Cardinals have defensive playmakers but they didn\u2019t show smarts against the Packers; Pro Bowlers like Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie regularly bit on play fakes from Aaron Rodgers. Against creative coach Sean Payton and the Saints, that should happen again. Look for Robert Meachem to have a banner day on his deep patterns.<\/p>\n However, since I\u2019m not confident that the Saints will keep the Cards off the board either, I don\u2019t think they\u2019ll cover the seven points. Pick Arizona to beat the spread but the Saints will ride their home-field advantage to narrowly escape with a victory.<\/p>\n Gambling Trends:<\/strong><\/p>\n Arizona is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games on the road
\nSportsbook favorite: Saints -7<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/banners.bmaker.ag\/images\/book_football_250_250_2.gif?cmpid=13385_1315\")
<\/a> He\u2019ll be ready and he has an endless number of weapons at his disposal. He has Marques Colston and Jeremy Shockey (or David Thomas) on jump balls; Robert Meachem and Devery Henderson on deep patterns; and a very underrated running game to back him up via Pierre Thomas and Mike Bell. Arguably, Thomas and Bell were the primary reason for New Orleans\u2019 vast improvement this year. Since they led the Saints to the NFL\u2019s No. 6 rushing offense, defenses couldn\u2019t key on Brees anymore.<\/p>\n
\nThe total has gone UNDER in 6 of Arizona’s last 8 games
\nArizona is 10-4 SU in its last 14 games
\nThe total has gone UNDER in 5 of Arizona’s last 7 games on the road
\nThe total has gone UNDER in 6 of New Orleans’s last 7 games
\nNew Orleans is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Arizona
\nNew Orleans is 13-3 SU in its last 16 games
\nThe total has gone UNDER in 4 of New Orleans’s last 5 games at home<\/p>\n