Henry Roldán
The last and first teams in the NFC West will close out the NFL regular round when Cardinals vs 49ers meet next Sunday.
Arizona is on a six-game losing streak after being beaten 19-20 by the Falcons, while San Francisco has nine consecutive wins after defeating the Raiders, in overtime, 37-34.
It’s worth remembering that in the first game of the campaign between the two teams, played in Mexico City, the 49ers won 10-38.
Without further ado, at JefeBet we bring you the preview of the Arizona Cardinals vs San Francisco 49ers.
Predictions and Betting Preview for the Arizona Cardinals vs San Francisco 49ers NFL Week 18 Game on January 8 2023
- Where: Levi’s Stadium – Santa Clara, California.
- When: Sunday, January 8, 2023 – 4:25 PM E.T.
Odds provided by BetMGM.
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Betting on Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals’ terrible season will finally come to an end this Sunday, and nothing bodes well for it.
Arizona is unlikely to break out from its offensive slumber while visiting one of the greatest teams in the league. Also, they have been without Kyler Murray for a couple of weeks.
The Cardinals are the third-worst team in average yards gained per play at 4.8 and have gone four games without scoring more than 19 points. They have only completed 16 touchdown passes and have had 14 interceptions; additionally, with 111 penalties, they have the most penalties of any NFL offense.
Arizona struggled to answer on defense as well, giving up 411 points to place third overall. They have allowed 342 first downs to opponents, which is the fifth-highest total in the league. They rank sixth in the league in touchdown passes allowed with 26 and seventh in rushing TDs allowed with 17. Additionally, they don’t perform well in the red zone; in fact, they are the third least effective team, allowing touchdowns on 65% of their opponents’ trips.
Betting on the San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers might finish Sunday as the National Conference leaders if they get a win over the Cardinals, and if the Eagles don’t beat the Giants.
Despite having rookie Brock Purdy as their offensive leader, San Francisco scored 37 points for the second consecutive game and in six of their last 10 games they have scored more than 30 points.
Since his debut, Christian McCaffrey has been a phenomenon, and the 49ers are currently seventh in total rushing yards and sixth in rushing touchdowns. They are also third in teams with the fewest lost fumbles (with 17) and fourth in average yards gained per play (6.0).
However, the best weapon of these 49ers is their defense, which is considered the number one in the league. Prior to the game against the Raiders, San Francisco had eight straight games without allowing more than 20 points, and the 264 points they have allowed on the year are the fewest in the league. They are also fourth in fumbles recovered with 26 and opponents rush for an average of 3.4 yards per carry – the lowest in the league.
JefeBet Prediction
A 14-point spread seems pretty high, but with a chance to win the National Conference and against a pretty poor Cardinals team, the 49ers have enough weapons to win this game by a wide margin.
The key is that Arizona’s offense does not have what it takes to beat an elite defense like San Francisco’s, while the 49ers’ offense is improving as the weeks go by.
Prediction: 49ers Spread (ARI 16 – SF 33).
