Lions Cardinals Odds
Posted by Jimmy Boyd - Google+
The Arizona Cardinals (4-9) host the Detroit Lions (4-9) Sunday at 4:05 PM ET in NFC non-division action. The game will be televised locally on FOX. Oddsmakers have listed the Lions as a six-point favorite and have set the total at 44.0.
Why Detroit Covers
The Detroit Lions have lost five in a row, but their struggles don’t compare to those of the Arizona Cardinals.
The Cardinals started the season 4-0 but have since lost nine consecutive games. Six of these defeats, including last week’s 58-0 road loss to the Seattle Seahawks, have come by more than six points.
While the Cardinals have been getting torched, the Lions have been losing by narrow margins to good teams. Each of Detroit last four losses have come by seven points or less to the Green Bay Packers (twice), Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts. The Lions had excellent opportunities to win each of these games.
An anemic offense is the biggest reason why Arizona hasn’t been able to find its way back into the win column. The Cardinals rank dead last in the NFL in both scoring and total offense with averages of 14.3 points and 269.7 yards per game. Offense hasn’t been the problem for the Lions.
Detroit ranks second in the NFL in total offense with 413.8 yards per game behind a potent passing attack that leads the league with 307.8 yards per game. The Lions rank 12th in scoring with 24.6 points per contest.
The Cardinals have been a poor investment during their losing streak. In fact, they are just 2-8 against the spread in their last 10 games. It is also worth noting that the favorite has covered the spread in six of the last seven meetings in this series.
Why Arizona Covers
The Cardinals have lost nine in a row and were completely embarrassed last week, but I don’t expect them to throw in the towel. They will be out to save some face here.
The Cardinals haven’t dropped 10 straight games in one season since the franchise was located in Chicago, and this team does not want to match the longest single-season losing streak in franchise history.
It may not be wise to lay this many points with a team that has lost its last five games, especially if that team has typically struggled in the favorite role.
The Lions are an ugly 42-63 against the spread as a favorite over the last two decades. They are on a 5-18 against the spread slide as a road favorite, a 4-18 against the spread slide as a road favorite of seven points or less and a 21-40 against the number skid as a favorite of 3.5 to 9.5 points.
It is also worth noting that the home team has dominated this series. It is 8-1 straight up and 9-0 against the spread in the last nine meetings. The Lions are 0-4 straight up and against the spread in games played in Arizona during this span. They lost these four games by an average of 6.8 points.
Detroit is 0-4-1 against the number during its current losing streak and is only 3-8-1 against the spread in its last 12 road games.
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