Broncos vs. Cardinals Total Prediction
Week 7 in the NFL kicks off on Thursday night in Arizona where the Cardinals will host the Denver Broncos at 8:20 p.m. ET. In terms of the over/under, what’s the best play for bettors?
Game Snapshot
301 Denver Broncos at 302 Arizona Cardinals
8:20 p.m. ET, Thursday, October 18
State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetNow.eu, the Broncos are 2-point favorites to beat the Cardinals. The total, meanwhile, sits at 41.5 points. As of this writing, 69% of the public betting tickets are on the Broncos to cover the point spread.
Denver Broncos
Coach Vance Joseph remains committed to Case Keenum as the Broncos’ starting quarterback. “Case is our quarterback,” Joseph said after yet another Broncos loss on Sunday. Keenum was checked for a concussion at the end of the first half, and sophomore Chad Kelly came into a standing ovation from Broncos fans to kneel it out on the final play of the second quarter. Kelly was also tremendous in the preseason. Keenum hasn’t been the worst of the Broncos’ problems, but his play also leaves the rest of the team zero margin for error since he’s simply unable to deliver anything more than mediocre quarterbacking. There haven’t been more than a couple worse starting quarterbacks in the league through six weeks. Keenum is tied for the league lead with eight interceptions, and only Josh Allen and Marcus Mariota have worse passer ratings. Joseph and Keenum will go down with arms linked.
Arizona Cardinals
David Johnson rushed 18 times for 55 yards and a touchdown in Week 6 against the Vikings. Johnson’s struggles continued, but he managed to salvage his game with a late one-yard TD. He dropped a red-zone target, lost a fumble, and was stuffed on fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line before his touchdown. Johnson’s pass game role remained small, finishing with just two catches for 15 yards. Johnson has looked nothing like the back he was in 2016. Despite a lackluster season to this point, Johnson will be a must-start against a Broncos defense which has given up back-to-back 200-yard rushers.
NFL Betting Trends
Denver
The Broncos are 5-1 against the spread in their last six games versus the Cardinals.
Arizona
The Cardinals are 4-1 against the number in their last five home games.
Prediction
The Cardinals certainly made the right move switching from the ineffective and disinterested Sam Bradford to rookie Sam Rosen but unfortunately the offense hasn’t improved greatly despite the move. They scored just 17 points against the Seahawks at home, then 28 on the road against a banged-up San Francisco defense, then just 17 a week ago on the road versus Minnesota. Denver has its own problems offensively thanks to Keenum, who has not moved the Broncos offense effectively. The under is 4-1 in the Broncos’ last five games overall and 19-7 in the Cardinals’ last 26 home games.
NFL Week 7 Prediction: Broncos/Cardinals under 41.5