Falcons (1-4) at Cardinals (1-3-1)
Cardinals schedule
T ........... Detroit ........... 27-27 L ...... at Baltimore ...... 23-17 L .......... Carolina .......... 38-20 L ........... Seattle ........... 27-10 W ..... at Cincinnati ..... 26-23 Oct. 13 ...... Atlanta ...... 4:05 Oct. 20 .... at N.Y. Giants .... 1 Oct. 27 .. at New Orleans .. 1 Oct. 31 San Francisco 8:20 Nov. 10 ... at Tampa Bay ... 1 Nov. 17 at San Francisco 4:05 Nov. 24 .............. BYE .............. Dec. 1 ..... L.A. Rams ..... 4:05 Dec. 8 .... Pittsburgh .... 4:25 Dec. 15 .... Cleveland .... 4:05 Dec. 22 .... at Seattle .... 4:25 Dec. 29 . at L.A. Rams . 4:25
Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET, State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Arizona
TV: Fox
Danny Sheridan’s by 2 ⁄2
1
Falcons’ keys to victory: The Falcons have struggled offensively and defensively, but if they’re going to win their offense must stop turning the ball over. Arizona has not yet intercepted a pass but has forced eight fumbles. Atlanta needs take advantage of a depleted secondary that will be without suspended CB Patrick Peterson for one more week and has two rookies in the starting lineup.
Cardinals’ keys to victory: They must improve defensively. Statistically, they have been worse than their bad 2018 defense. They have struggled against tight ends, and Falcons TE Austin Hooper leads the team in receptions. On offense, the Cardinals have to score in the red zone, something they have struggled with all season. QB Kyler Murray must avoid taking unnecessary sacks, which he has frequently done in his rookie season.
Matchup to watch: Falcons WR Julio Jones vs. Cardinals CB Byron Murphy. Normally, the premier matchup has Jones against Patrick Peterson, which is mustsee football. However, Peterson will be serving the final game of his six-game suspension for violating the NFL’s policy on performanceenhancing drugs. That means the task of stopping Jones falls to Murphy, who has been physical and has played well overall but has not had an interception.
Who wins? The Cardinals, coming off their first win of the season, build on the momentum they started against the Bengals. They score early and finally do not have to play from behind.
Cardinals, 29-24 line: Falcons