The Detroit Lions (-2.5) and Arizona Cardinals will face off indoors at University of Phoenix Stadium. This late afternoon game is scheduled to kick off at 4:25 p.m. ET and fans can catch the action by tuning in to FOX.
Betting Preview: Detroit Lions at Arizona Cardinals
In this Sunday NFC game, Detroit is getting picked as the favorite and is currently giving up 2.5 points. The Lions are also receiving -140 moneyline odds while the Cardinals are +120. This NFC matchup should provide several decent in-game betting opportunities, and oddsmakers have determined the over/under (O/U) to be 40 points.
The early action has swayed toward the under. The game’s O/U initially opened at 41.5.
The Lions are down 4.5 units so far in 2018 and 6-6 against the spread (ATS). The team has posted an Over-Under record of 6-6.
The Cardinals are down 1.3 units this season. The team is 6-6 ATS and has an O/U record of 5-7.
The Lions are 4-8 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Cardinals are 3-9 SU.
The Lions lost to the Rams 30-16 in a Week 13 game where their defense allowed the Rams to eat up the clock by running for 149 yards on 29 rush attempts, including two rush TDs. Todd Gurley II was on a different level for the Rams in that one with 132 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 23 attempts, along with 33 yards on three catches. On the offensive side, Matthew Stafford completed 20 passes for 245 yards, along with one score and a pick. LeGarrette Blount (61 yards on 16 rush attempts) propelled the ground attack in the loss while Bruce Ellington (seven receptions, 35 yards) and Levine Toilolo (four catches, 90 yards) shared the receiving duties.
Arizona is coming off of a 20-17 win over Green Bay a week ago. The team’s allowed the Packers to pass for 233 yards and rush for 98 more. Davante Adams had a good outing in the defeat, recording 93 yards on eight catches for Green Bay. For Arizona, Josh Rosen completed 11-of-26 passes for 149 yards. David Johnson (69 yards on 20 rush attempts) and Chase Edmonds (53 yards on five carries, two TDs) handled the ground game in the win as Christian Kirk (three receptions, 54 yards) and Larry Fitzgerald (three catches, 48 yards) led the pass-catching attack.
Detroit has run the ball on 39.1 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Arizona has a rush percentage of 43.3 percent. The Lions have produced 101.4 rush yards/game and have eight touchdowns via handoffs this year. The Cards are putting up 86.0 rushing yards per game and have eight total rush TDs.
If 2018 numbers are any indication, then it’s looking like the Cards should have the edge when it comes to applying pressure, since their offensive line has given up only 32 sacks while their D-line has registered 38 sacks. The Lions offensive line has given up 36 sacks and their defense has got to opposing signal-callerss on just 34 occasions.
The Lions offensive scheme has averaged 258.3 yards in the air overall and has 18 passing scores so far. The Cards have produced 172.5 pass yards per contest and have 12 total pass TDs.
Defensively, Detroit has let opponents rush for an average of 119.8 yards and pass for 253.5 yards per game. The Arizona defense has given up 241.3 yards per game to opposing passers and 140.9 yards per game to opposing runners. The Cards are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 6.17 to opposing QBs, while the Lions have given up a 7.83 ANY/A.
Offensively, Stafford has put up 2,850 passing yards this season, and has connected on 66 percent of his 401 attempts with 18 passing scores and nine interceptions. Stafford’s got a 5.94 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number is 4.09 over the last two outings.
On the other sideline, Josh Rosen has completed 136-of-254 passes for 1,565 yards, nine TDs and 10 INTs. Rosen’s ANY/A sits at 4.01 for the season and 3.98 over his past two games.
When these two teams faced one another last year, Detroit emerged victorious by a final score of 35-23.
Detroit Lions at Arizona Cardinals Free Betting Pick
SU Winner: Cardinals, ATS Winner: Cardinals, O/U: Under
Team Betting Trends
- The Arizona defense has created 38 sacks on the year while Detroit has 34.
- Arizona has lost seven fumbles this season while Detroit has lost six.
- The Lions offense has tallied four pass plays of 40 yards or more, while the Cardinals have accounted for three such plays.
- The Detroit defense has allowed seven pass plays of 40+ yards, while Arizona has given up four such plays.
- The Detroit offense has created nine rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while Arizona has created four such runs.
- The Lions defense has allowed nine rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while the Cardinals have given up 15 such runs.
- The Over/Under for Arizona’s last game was 41. The under cashed in the team’s 20-17 win over Green Bay.
- Over its last three games, Arizona is 1-2 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- In its last three matchups, Detroit is 1-2 ATS and the under cashed in each of those three.
- Detroit has lost six of its last seven games SU, with a one-point win over Carolina on November 18th representing the only victory over that stretch.
- The Over/Under for Detroit’s last game was set at 54. The under cashed in the team’s 30-16 defeat to the Rams.
- Detroit, as a team, has produced 4.0 yards per carry over its last three outings and 4.3 over its last two.
- Arizona has averaged 4.7 yards per carry over its last three contests and 4.6 over its past two.
