NFL on Sunday: Arizona Cardinals vs New York Giants Preview, Picks, Betting Predictions

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Bradberry: Cards vs Giants predictionsThe New York Giants are one of the hottest teams in the NFL right now while the Arizona Cardinals have cooled off significantly (1pm ET Sunday; TV: Like on Fox).

The Giants have won four straight including an impressive victory on the road against the Seahawks as double-digit underdogs.

The Cards have lost three straight and four of their last five. If it wasn’t for that incredible last second Hail Mary against the Bills they would be on a five-game losing streak. Starting quarterback Kyler Murray hasn’t been the same since their victory over the Bills and he appears to be more injured than the team is letting on. He’s been dealing with a shoulder issue, but it hasn’t been enough to sideline him. What impact will that have for this matchup? This preview, along with USAbetting’s Cards vs Giants predictions and picks, should tell us.

Giants Defensive Dominance to Continue?

The Giants’ defense has been a pleasant surprise. The addition of cornerback James Bradberry has been a massive plus. He is one of the main reasons for the success of the secondary. Over the last three games the Giants have only allowed 173.7 yards per game through the air, which is good for 6th in the league. The Giants were able to hold an explosive Seattle offense to only 10 points. Their lone touchdown came with six minutes left in the game to cut the lead to 17-12, which ended up being the final score.

Russell Wilson was still able to throw for 263 yards but the Giants were able to sack the star quarterback five times and intercepted him once. This was an incredibly impressive performance by the Giants to only allow 10 points. Before last week the Seahawks’ high-flying offense was averaging 31.0 points per game.

Bradberry will have a tall task going up against one of the most explosive wide receivers in DeAndre Hopkins. The star receiver has been slowed down over the last two weeks by shutdown corners similar to Bradberry. In week 11 against Stephon Gilmore and the Patriots, Hopkins only had 55 yards on five receptions and no touchdowns. Last week against Jalen Ramsey and the Rams, Hopkins had eight receptions for only 52 yards and one touchdown. Hopkins’ targets and receptions per game have both dropped since their week 7 bye. Bradberry only allows 5.8 yards per target with a 56% catch rate. If anyone can continue to slowdown Hopkins it’s Bradberry, who should be shadowing the explosive weapon for most of the game.

The Giants are one of the top rushing defenses and will look to shutdown a Cardinals’ offense that ranks 3rd in average rushing yards gained per game (150.6). The Giants only give up 96.7 rushing yards per game, which is good for 4th in the NFL. They are only one of five teams in the NFL that allow on average less than 100 rushing yards per game.

The Cardinals’ rushing attack is an entirely different beast than most with a mobile quarterback such as Kyler Murray. The explosive quarterback is second on the team in rushing attempts (102), rushing yards (665), and first in rushing touchdowns (10). Over the last three weeks Murray has only had 15 rushing attempts for 61 yards. This is well below his 6.5 average yards per rush on the season. The Cards are 6-2 when Murray has six or more rushing attempts. The lack of rushing makes me think that his shoulder injury is more serious than initially believed. He hasn’t been as willing to get out of the pocket and make plays with his legs, which may be in fear of further injuring his throwing shoulder. I expect the Giants to focus on stopping the run and not letting Murray beat them with his legs. I think they will pack the box and count on Bradberry to shutdown Hopkins and make Murray beat them with his other mediocre weapons.

Our Betting Preview’s Arizona Cardinals vs New York Giants Predictions & Picks Recommendations

The Giants will get a boost if quarterback Daniel Jones is able to return to the starting lineup. He is currently questionable, but he has been practicing and looks like he will be able to play. This should help pick up the offense and take some of the pressure off the defense. The Giants were only able to gain 105 yards through the air and could only muster 17 points last week with Colt McCoy in as the starting quarterback.

I expect the Giants offense to take advantage of a Cardinals’ defense that allows 24.7 points per game. The defense won’t have to play as perfect of a game as they did last week. They will be much more balanced and I think they can win this game outright.

USAbetting is going to be playing the Giants on the moneyline at +125. With such a low spread we opted to take the plus money for them to win the game. We think their defense will stymy the Cardinals and that the offense will do enough to help win this game.

The under 46.5 total points could be a good look as well, I but feel more confident in the Giants. Play the +2.5pts on the spread with the top online bookmakers if you would like to be more conservative. I see this being a close and competitive game but ultimately a Giants victory to maintain their first place status in the NFC East. I see this being a 24-20 victory for the G-Men. So, while USAbetting does like the under, the selection for our Cards vs Giants predictions is: