UPDATE: Big bet wins, the under gets slaughtered. Hope you cashed on AZ's win today!
AZ CARDINALS VS CLEVELAND BROWNS - WEEK 8
AZ comes off a closer than advertised win against BAL, while CLE recovers from a beatdown in STL. However, AZ has to travel to the east coast..
THE INTANGIBLES TO KNOW ABOUT THIS WEEK:
- John Brown is active today, but even if he can't go full speed, JJ Nelson, a rookie, is even faster than JB. He has decent hands, too, but the jury is out when the bullets start to fly.
- Did you know CLE is something like 7th in 3rd down completion rate? What that means is that if McCown has time to throw, he can complete short passes. However..
- As a former AZ Cardinals, I can assure you he does not do well if he has to consistently throw 15-20 yard passes down the field. He is not accurate after 10 yards. Also..
- He cannot read a defense.. and he still can't. Expect AZ to change up defensive formations quite a bit to trick him.
- CLE can't run the ball, and CLE can't stop the ball.
- AZ is 3rd in yards per carry. CLE is tied for 29th.
- AZ is 15th defensively in regards to opponents yard per carry. Cleveland is 31st.
- Bruce Arians holds no ill feelings from his stint in CLE when he was the offensive coordinator for 3 years. (One of those years was when they went to the playoffs.) However..
- BA was never offered an interview when the head coaching job opened up. That job when the Chudzinski, and now Pettine.
- CLE couldn't move the ball down the field against STL last week if they had put the ball in a pickup truck and tried to drive it down the field. (Read: ugly ugly offense)
- If you want a preview of what kind of defense AZ plans to deploy against CLE, watch the CLE/NYJ game earlier this year. Todd Bowles and James Bettcher similar defenses.
- Who is the guy on the D-line who is replacing Darnell Dockett's nastiness on the D-line? Word on the street is that it's Frostee Rucker. He is amping up the AZ D-line with his style of play.
OUTLOOK AND PREDICTION FOR WEEK 8:
I expect AZ to force CLE to prove they can handle pressure, let alone run the ball. CLE this year has yet to prove they can run the ball or stop the run. If you want a good idea how AZ will approach CLE, watch the game where CLE played NYJ earlier this year since NYJ's D and AZ's D is similar. However, throw in an explosive offense with 3 RBs that can make the homerun, and this game might get ugly. The only way AZ doesn't cover is if they penalize themselves... Or let CLE's TE run buckwild in the middle of AZ's D. (That said, CLE tends to commit their share of penalties, too!) As someone who watched "McClown" play for AZ, his team better not be down by more than 10 at half time or Rosie O'Donnell will be singing by the end of the 3rd. Asking AZ to cover a TD shouldn't be too tall of a task to ask..
PREDICTION #1: ARIZONA -5.5 OVER CLEVELAND **BIG BET**
PREDICTION #2: under 45.5 (28-17)
(2015 record to date: 8-8. Damn those props!)