Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals Betting Preview

Thursday Night Football features a matchup of top-ranked NFC teams as the Green Bay Packers (6-1, first in the NFC North) take on the Arizona Cardinals (7-0, first in the NFC West). The Cardinals will host this one at State Farm Stadium, with kickoff scheduled for 8:20 pm ET.

After dropping their season opener, the Packers have now won six in a row, including a 24-10 victory over the Washington Football Team last week. In the victory, Aaron Rodgers threw for 274 yards and three touchdowns.

For the Cardinals, they are the only team that remains undefeated in the league. Last week, they were able to take down the Texans 31-5 at home.

In the victory, Kyler Murray threw for 261 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception. Newcomer Zach Ertz, who was recently acquired in a trade, had three receptions for 66 yards and a touchdown.

The Cardinals are the favorites in this one playing at home. They are -290 to win while the Packers’ moneyline sits at +235. The spread features Green Bay +6.5 (-110), and the over/under for total points is 50.5 (-110).

More Odds

Both of these teams are the favorites to win their respective divisions. The Packers are -700 to win the NFC North, while the Cardinals are -195 to win the NFC West.

In terms of the Super Bowl, the Cardinals have the third-best odds of winning it all at +850. The Packers have the sixth-best odds of winning Super Bowl LVI at +1100.

By The Numbers

In their last six games, the Packers are 6-0, both straight up and against the spread. Despite their recent success, they are just 1-4 against the Cardinals in their last five matchups.

Not only have the Cardinals been dominant this season, but they are also doing well against the spread. In fact, they are 5-0 in their last five games against the spread and 5-2 in their last seven games when they are the favorite.

Packers Trying To Overcome COVID Obstacles

In addition to some injuries to the Packers’ roster, Green Bay is also dealing with a bit of a COVID-19 outbreak. For Aaron Rodgers, his wide receiving core has been especially impacted as both Davante Adams, and Allen Lazard have been put on the COVID-19 list, making their availability for Thursday’s game questionable at best.

Speaking of Rodgers, he has had another great start to the season. Thus far, he has thrown for 1,710 yards, 15 touchdowns, and just three interceptions. He also has rushed for 44 yards and another two scores.

Without Adams and Lazard, it may be running back Aaron Jones and veteran Randall Cobb getting most of the action.

For Jones, he has 404 yards rushing and 186 yards receiving to date. He also has a combined six touchdowns.

For Cobb, he has 14 receptions for 179 yards and two scores.

Defensively, the Packers currently rank tied for seventh in scoring defense, allowing 20.9 points per game (25.5 on the road).

Cardinals Trying To Stay Unbeaten

While the Cardinals would love nothing more than to have a perfect season, there is also pressure to stay unbeaten as they have just a one-game lead over the Rams despite being 7-0. With the NFC West shaping up to be a very competitive division, every win is crucial for the Cardinals.

Leading the team on offense is quarterback Kyler Murray. Thus far, Murray has thrown for 2,002 yards, 17 touchdowns, and five interceptions. He has also rushed 43 times for 126 yards and another three scores.

Murray has done a nice job spreading the ball around as he has four receivers with over 300 yards and three with over 400 yards. Leading the way, though, is DeAndre Hopkins, who has 33 receptions for 420 yards and seven touchdowns.

The Cardinals currently rank first in scoring defense, allowing opponents just 16.3 points per game.

Taking The Cardinals To Win, But Can They Cover?

There is just a lot going against the Packers in this one. Not only are they on the road against arguably the hottest team in football, but they are going to be very short-handed in this one as well.

Granted, if there is anyone who can still lead a team against all odds, it is Aaron Rodgers, but even this short week might be insurmountable for him.

While taking the Cardinals to win straight up seems like the smart bet, it is still hard to spot Rodgers 6.5 points.

Take Arizona on the moneyline, but there may be some good value in taking Green Bay and the points.