Pats will feast on Cards
The Patriots have been pretty easy to figure out this season. The Pats have beaten below-average teams and lost to tougher competition. Luckily for
New England, they face a belowaverage team in the Cardinals on Monday night.
New England’s six wins are against teams with a combined record of 26-34-1. The Patriots’ six losses have come against teams with a combined record 43-32. The only team the Pats have beaten with a winning record this season is the
Jets (twice).
Sitting at 4-8, the Cardinals fit the profile of a team Bill Belichick’s bunch has feasted on this year. Not only are the Cardinals out of the NFC playoff hunt, there are reports of internal issues like players not happy with quarterback Kyler Murray and head coach Kliff Kingsbury being on his way out the door after the season.
Arizona comes in 1-4 in its last five games with the only win coming against the fledgling Rams. While the Pats aren’t the most talented team in the league, they are still well-coached and rarely beat themselves. New England’s much-maligned offense should also have some success against a Cardinals defense that allows 26.8 points per game (31st) and ranks 24th against the pass.
I’m not surprised to see New England as short road favorites in this spot and Belichick does a good job of getting his teams prepared after playing poorly. The Pats are 12-2 ATS in their last 14 games following a double-digit loss at home. I expect that trend to continue.
THE PLAY: Patriots, -125.
Thomas Casale handicaps the NFL for The Action Network.