Cardinals (4-9-1) at Seahawks (11-3)
Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET, CenturyLink Field, Seattle
TV: Fox
Danny Sheridan’s by 10
Cardinals’ keys to victory: The Cardinals’ sole job in this outing is to play spoiler. Arizona has struggled to find offensive consistency despite the addition of QB and No. 1 overall draft pick Kyler Murray. Combine the rookie signal-caller with new head coach Kliff Kingsbury and it’s no wonder this is a rebuilding year. The Cardinals have found ways to beat Seattle late in the season in recent years, though, and Seattle’s passing game is somewhat depleted without WR Josh Gordon, who has been suspended indefinitely without pay for violating the NFL’s policies on performance-enhancing drugs and substances of abuse.
Seahawks’ keys to victory: Seattle has dropped two games at CenturyLink Field this season and cannot afford another loss, especially to a divisional opponent. QB Russell Wilson needs to turn to his veteran wide receivers, along with rookie wideout DK Metcalf, to capture the early momentum. While Murray has been a turnover machine for Arizona, this is not the matchup for Seattle’s pass rush to just roll over, because the Cardinals’ offense can still strike unpredictably. The Seahawks need to play clean football to set the pace.
Matchup to watch: Cardinals’ Murray vs. Seahawks’ defensive ends. Starters Jadeveon Clowney and Ziggy Ansah finally found their rhythm in Seattle, but both have been battling injuries. If any replacements called up for Sunday look past Murray and Co., Seattle could slip.
Who wins? This game is too important to the Seahawks to play down to the Cardinals.
Seahawks, 31-10 line:
Seahawks
Cards schedule
T .......... Detroit .......... 27-27 L ...... at Baltimore ...... 23-17 L ......... Carolina ......... 38-20 L .......... Seattle .......... 27-10 W ..... at Cincinnati ..... 26-23 W ......... Atlanta ......... 34-33 W .... at N.Y. Giants .... 27-21 L .... at New Orleans .... 31-9 L .... San Francisco .... 28-25 L .... at Tampa Bay .... 30-27 L ...at San Francisco... 36-26 BYE
L ......... L.A. Rams ......... 34-7 L ....... Pittsburgh ....... 23-17 W ....... Cleveland ....... 38-24 Dec.22 ...atSeattle ...4:25 Dec. 29 at L.A. Rams 4:25
Seahawks schedule
W ........ Cincinnati ........ 21-20 W ..... at Pittsburgh ..... 28-26 L ...... NewOrleans ...... 33-27 W ........ at Arizona ........ 27-10 W ........ L.A. Rams ........ 30-29 W ...... at Cleveland ...... 32-28 L ......... Baltimore ......... 30-16 W ........ atAtlanta ........ 27-20 W .... Tampa Bay .... 40-34 OT W at San Francisco 27-24 OT
BYE
W ..... at Philadelphia ..... 17-9 W ....... Minnesota ....... 37-30 L ....... at L.A. Rams ....... 28-12 W ....... atCarolina ....... 30-24 Dec. 22 ....... Arizona ....... 4:25 Dec. 29 San Francisco . 4:25