NFL WILDCARD WEEKEND – PACKERS vs. CARDINALS
Damn the torpedos, full speed ahead.
That was the approach of Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy in Arizona last weekend, and we’ll find out in a few days whether or not playing the regulars most of the way in the meaningless regular-season game will pay dividends when the teams meet Sunday in a game that really counts.
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Time: Sunday 4:40 ET
Venue: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Ariz.
MoneyLine: Packers +106 (-110) / Cardinals -120 (-110)
Spread: Cardinals -1
Over/Under: 47
The line opened Cardinals -2.5, but was quickly bet down to Arizona -1 by a public that was apparently impressed by Green Bay’s 33-7 victory last Sunday.
The Packers head into the game on a tear. Six wins in the final seven regular-season games vaulted GB from an NFC afterthought into a club that must now be in the conversation as a serious threat to get to the Super Bowl.
After stumbling and bumbling their way to a 4-4 start that included two losses to the Vikings that basically settled the issue in the NFC North, only the Steelers (in Pittsburgh, and by only one point) have been able to ding the Pack. GB hasn’t exactly beaten the cream of the crop in the NFL during its run, but in a 16-game season any win is important, and the Packers have a solid 11-5 record as they begin the playoffs.
Can they beat the Cardinals twice in a row in the desert? Of course. Will they? That’s another issue.
GB came out of last week’s game relatively healthy. The notable exception was cornerback Charles Woodson, who aggravated a shoulder sprain that is believed to have occurred during the Pack’s game against the Lions on Thanksgiving Day.
Woodson is expected to play on Sunday, and that’s important to McCarthy’s mental health as it’s obvious that stopping Arizona’s passing game will go a long way toward getting to the divisional round of the playoffs. GB might catch a break because Anquan Boldin is banged up, and if Boldin, Larry Fitgerald and Steve Breaston are all at 100 percent, the chaos in the opposition secondary can look like downtown Tokyo at rush hour.
Making things more complicated for the Packers is the fact that Arizona at long last has a legitimate running game. The default is still to have Kurt Warner pass the ball, but Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells both average well over four yards a carry, and that just gives GB defensive coordinator Dom Capers one more thing to worry about. For all its weapons, Arizona is just the 14th-ranked offensive team in the league, and 11 other teams gained more through the air than the Cardinals did.
Both teams love the vertical passing game, and waiting for receivers to gain separation in the secondary has made life tough for Warner and GB quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Warner has been sacked 27 times, which is a lot but nowhere near the 50 times that Rodgers has gone down. Both teams have firmed up their O-line play recently, but pocket protection will be a huge factor in this one.
Pick: Cardinals
Comment on this game below, hit us with your pregame NFL picks and predictions…
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Lawrence Paul is a regular contributor to the Cappers Picks Blog, and is a free-lance gambling and travel expert from Massachusetts.
3 replies on “Wild Card NFL Spreads: Packers vs. Cardinals”
The Dallas game? ….that was the game that started the packer run…if you don’t consider them cream of the crop, who do you think of?
This isn’t Lawrence but I will chime in for a sec. Wins over Detroit, Chicago and Seattle 3 outta the last 5 weeks hardly do anything to proove your a top team.
But I AM a Packer supporter this week vs. Arizona. Their run will continue
If Arizona can develop any kind of running game then Kurt Warner would be set up for a big day. The Packers’ offense is just as dangerous as Aaron Rodgers is playing as well as anyone right now.
This one comes down to Green Bay’s defense stepping up when they have to make a crucial stop. I’m going with the Packers in a wild one.