The NFL’s third-leading passer, Carson Palmer (2,012 yards, 16 TDs), and second-leading passer, Carson Palmer (2,012 yards, 16 TDs), will be on display when the Arizona Cardinals (5-2) meet the Cleveland Browns (2-5). The game will begin Sunday, Nov 1 at 1:00 p.m. ET and can be seen on FOX.
Cleveland lost to the Rams 24-6 last week. Gary Barnidge had an outstanding performance in the loss, totaling six catches for 101 yards. Arizona is hoping for a similar result as last week when they beat the Ravens 26-18. Chris Johnson had a big game on the ground for the Cardinals, rushing for 122 yards and one TD on 18 carries.
The Browns, a four-point underdog, will be looking to defend their home field when Arizona comes to town. Oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 46 points.
The Browns enter the game with records of 2-5 Straight Up (SU) and 3-3-1 Against The Spread (ATS) this season. Over their last five games, the Browns have records of 1-4 SU and 2-2-1 ATS. The Browns passing attack has averaged 308.2 passing yards over the last five games. As for the Cleveland defense, there are important areas to keep an eye on. One of the keys to the game will be if the Cardinals can prevent giveaways against the Browns, whose defense ranks fourth in the league with 2.3 turnovers per home game. On special teams, Cleveland has some playmakers. They average 126.7 return yards per game at home, the most in the NFL.
Moving to the road team, the Cardinals have 5-2 SU and 4-3 ATS records this season. The Cardinals went 3-2 SU and 2-3 ATS over the last five games. Offensively, they average 34.3 points per road game, which is second in the league. The Browns could do a better job at stopping their opponents’ rush offense. The Cardinals will look to find holes in a run defense that gives up an NFL-worst 151 rushing yards per game. Shifting to the other side of the ball, the Arizona defense could excel if they take advantage of favorable matchups. Arizona’s defense ranks in the top half of the league for rushing yards allowed and could have the upper hand this week against the 28th-ranked rushing attack of the Browns, which averages 90.4 yards on the ground per game. The Cardinals need to capitalize on takeaway opportunities against the turnover-inclined Browns, who rank 28th in the league in turnovers with 2.1 per game. The Cardinals start games with confidence, averaging 7.4 points in the first quarter. Special teams help provide a spark for Arizona. They average the fourth-most return yards in the NFL with 98.3.
Predictions: SU Winner – Ari, ATS Winner – Ari, O/U – Under
Notes
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Cleveland’s last 7 games.
Cleveland is 2-10 SU in its last 12 games.
Cleveland is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games at home.
Arizona is 5-1 SU when leading at the half this season. Cleveland is 1-0 SU when taking a lead into halftime.
Remarkably, Arizona is winless (0-2 SU) in games where it wins the turnover battle, yet undefeated (2-0 SU) when losing the turnover battle.
Cleveland has drawn an average of 8.6 penalties on opponents this season, but Arizona is 2-1 SU when penalized at least eight times in a game.
According to season yardage rankings, Arizona is rated higher in the ground game on both sides of the ball. Its 10th-ranked rushing attack will face the last-ranked run defense of Cleveland, while its seventh-ranked rush defense will look to contain the 28th-ranked run game of the Browns.
