When: Thursday, October 6th 2016 at 8:25 PM ET
Where: Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California
Watch: NBC
Two struggling NFC West foes meet on Thursday Night Football, as the San Francisco 49ers 1-3 (1-3 ATS) host the Arizona Cardinals 1-3 (1-3 ATS). Arizona are coming off a home loss against the Rams, while the 49ers lost to the Cowboys at home. Both teams need a quick turnaround to salvage the season.
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Cardinals at 49ers money line, point spread and over/under odds
- Money Line: Arizona Cardinals (-165) vs. San Francisco 49ers (+145)
- Point Spread: Arizona Cardinals –3 (-115) vs. San Francisco 49ers +3 (-105)
- Game Total: Over 42 Points (-110) vs. Under 42 Points (-110)
Nearly all of the early action is coming in on the Cardinals to cover ATS on the road and to win straight-up on the money line. The line opened up at –2.5 points, but is already –3 and could jump to –3.5 points.
Despite having the second lowest total of the week, most handicappers have bet under 42 points.
Stats pack
Here’s an offensive and defensive breakdown of the 49ers and Cardinals.
- Points Scored: Cardinals 23.0 PPG (14th) vs. 49ers 22.5 PPG (15th)
- Passing Yards (OFF): Cardinals 281.2 PYPG (7th) vs. 49ers 178.8 PYPG (32nd)
- Rushing Yards (OFF): Cardinals 100.8 RYPG (15th) vs. 49ers 114.0 RYPG (10th)
- Points Allowed: Cardinals 20.0 PPG (11th) vs. 49ers 26.8 PPG (23rd)
- Passing Yards (DEF): Cardinals 203.5 PYPG (7th) vs. 49ers 249.5 PYPG (13th)
- Rushing Yards (DEF): Cardinals 110.0 RYPG (20th) vs. 49ers 140.5 RYPG (32nd)
- Turnover Margin: Cardinals –1 (18th) vs. 49ers +2 (12th)
The Cardinals have scored more points this season than they’ve allowed, but they still only have one win on the season. This team will start winning games based on the numbers they’ve posted. Meanwhile, the 49ers have plenty of holes on offense and defense. Expecting SF to improve is wishful thinking.
Cardinals vs. 49ers point spread prediction
- Best Bet: Arizona Cardinals –3 (-115) at Bovada.lv
While I’m still not completely sure how to read the Cardinals abysmal start to the season, especially after losing to the Rams as big favorites, they have time to right the ship. San Francisco have the worst passing offense in the NFL and they’re going up against one of the best passing defenses.
If Arizona are able to put some points on the scoreboard early, the 49ers won’t have an answer. The 49ers are going to want to run the football with Carlos Hyde. Hyde has 299 rushing yards and 5 rushing TDs on 73 carries this season. He has been the lone bright spot on offense for SF.
Carson Palmer has thrown for 1150 passing yards, but he only has 6 passing TDs and he has thrown 5 INTs. Turnovers have cost Palmer at times throughout his career and they’ve been an issue already this season. The turnovers are unacceptable, especially with the talented WRs on Arizona.
Palmer has keyed in on veteran Larry Fitzgerald a lot to begin the season. Fitzgerald has 25 receptions for 280 yards and 3 TDs. He’s a great short to intermediate route runner, but he doesn’t have the speed to beat defenses deep anymore. Michael Floyd was expected to be the deep ball threat.
Not only are the Cardinals the more talented team, but they’ve owned the 49ers lately. Arizona are 3-1 H2H against SF the last two seasons, going 1-1 in road games. These teams are in similar positions, but the Cardinals had Super Bowl hopes to begin the season and should be more motivated to pick up a win.
Cardinals vs. 49ers over/under prediction
- Best Bet: Under 42 Points (-110) at Bovada.lv
This total is likely to creep a bit lower before kick-off on Thursday night, as a lot of action has come in on the under already. 42 points isn’t much for a football game, but three of the last four H2H games have stayed under 40 points. That trend is likely to continue, as both offenses are struggling.
Blaine Gabbert isn’t getting it done, but Chip Kelly doesn’t want to change QBs yet. David Johnson and Hyde are both going to get a lot of carries out of the backfield, which will help keep this score low. The one thing that could kill this bet is if both QBs throw multiple interceptions, which is a definite possibility.