15 Jan 2010

NFL Tips

Another Cardinal playoff run

The Betting Advantage previews the first of four NFL playoff games taking place this weekend.

To close out the regular season, both the Arizona Cardinals and the New Orleans Saints were playing their worst football of the season. Things turned around for the Cardinals last week...well, just on offense.

Last week against the Packers the Cardinals could not be stopped. Arizona punted the ball just twice en route to a 51-45 overtime win. The contest was the second highest scoring game in NFL playoff history. On the way to the 51 point outburst Kurt Warner threw for 375 yards and 5 touchdowns. Arizona averaged 11.0 yards per pass play. The Cardinals also showed some balance as they rushed for 156 yards. Beanie Wells was the main ball carrier, running 14 times for 91 yards. That's an impressive 6.5 yards per carry.

This is enough to convince me that the Cardinals offense is back on track. However, I'm unsure about the Saints offense. New Orleans started the season by reeling off 13 wins. They now come into the playoffs on a three game losing streak.

Basically, what I am thinking is the Saints are getting too much respect here. My feeling is the Cardinals have a legitimate shot of going into New Orleans and pulling off the upset. Does anyone remember the Cardinals' Super Bowl run last season?

I'm giving the Cardinals around a 40% shot of winning this game. Therefore, taking the Cards at 3.50 (+250) in the Match Odds is great value.

The other interesting bet here is the total. The total is set at 56.5. Arizona didn't show much on defense last weekend, other than an interception returned for a touchdown to win the game. I think this game goes over the total, which you can back for 2.02 (+102).