Arizona Cardinals (1-1 SU, 2-0 ATS) vs. Seattle Seahawks (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS), 4:15 p.m. EST. NFL Week 3, Sunday, September 25, 2011, CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington, TV: Fox
by Scotty L, Football Handicapper, Predictem.com
Point Spread: AZ -3/SEA +3
Over/Under Total: 42
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On Sunday, the Arizona Cardinals make the trip up north to take on the Seattle Seahawks. For the Seahawks, they welcome the idea of returning home after taking their share of lumps in two road games. The Cardinals are looking to continue their over-achieving ways, with covers in the first two weeks and a 1-1 record that could easily be 2-0.
Seattle’s form looks poor, but they were only down to a decent San Francisco team by 2 points until late in the 4th quarter. Getting goose-egged on Sunday was certainly demoralizing, but they were facing an irritated Pittsburgh team gunning to save face after a bad opening week loss to Baltimore. Just two games in, there are bad signs. Their leading rusher has a paltry 44 yards and their leading receiver only 87.
But Seattle is now at home and presumably facing a lesser power in Arizona. Despite this being only week three, some more cynical Seattle fans might already be scouring the college ranks for a high draft choice next year. Nevertheless, if Seattle can recapture some of the form that saw them battle the 49ers so tough on the road for 3 ¾ quarters, they should be half-decent at home—particularly against the bottom-third of the league.
It’s just not entirely clear if the Cardinals are one of those bottom-third teams. In week one, they overcame Cam Newton’s 400+ yards to seal the game late. In week two, they faced a Redskins team on the road who had just beaten the Giants by two touchdowns. Leading late, they gave up a 4th-quarter field goal that cost them a one-point victory.
In their first two games, the Arizona defense has taken their share of knocks, especially in giving up over 700 yards passing. Still, they have been clutch in certain spots. The offense, with new QB Kevin Kolb at the helm, has seen a definite upswing from last season’s woes, which featured a carrousel of quarterbacks.
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With a pair of covers in their first two games, Kolb has showed he is perhaps ready to flourish in new surroundings—with 560 yards passing with 4 touchdowns against only one pick. He is already making good use of his two main threats, Larry Fitzgerald and Early Doucet. Running back Beanie Wells is averaging 5.7 yards per carry, including 93 against Washington. This is a team that showed what it could do a few years ago with a top QB running the show in Kurt Warner. They’ve lost some key players since that Super Bowl run of 2009, but they seem better than anytime since that great season and just might have an outside shot at the postseason this season.
Seattle parlayed an 8-8 season into a postseason berth last season and even beat the Saints in the playoffs. They crushed the Cardinals in their last meeting, 36-18, and also won their first meeting of 2010. But this league can be fickle. A few personnel changes here and there can throw a whole different light on things. Seattle players like QB Tarvaris Jackson, RB Marshawn Lynch, WRs Mike Williams, Doug Baldwin, and Sidney Rice are all nice players. But as the featured players of an NFL offense, they are a pretty low-end group and will need to do a complete about-face to emerge as even a mid-pack entity.
Seattle isn’t going to be 0-16 this season. This seems, on paper, as a game that Seattle can win. It’s just that they really seem to be struggling to find their bearings. They were doing well against San Francisco, but the bottom line is they fell apart badly when it mattered the most. Expect Pete Carroll to have this team good and revved up. This is their home opener and the crowd should help buoy their sagging spirits.
Scotty L’s Pick to Cover the Point Spread: Look for Seattle to play hard and give Arizona backers a good sweat. Some good things are bound to happen for the Seahawks, so a big special teams play or some key turnovers here and there could keep them in this game and in position to potentially win. This team is a completely different animal at home. They'll wint his game straight up, so the points are just a nice bonus! Bet Seattle at +3!
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