The Los Angeles Rams and Arizona Cardinals are coming into this Week 3 matchup from very different perspectives.
Everyone saw the Rams get easily beaten by the Buffalo Bills in the season opener. Then the Rams almost allowed their Week 2 game against the Atlanta Falcons to get away from them late, allowing 17 points in the 4th quarter. Luckily for the Rams, All-Pro corner Jalen Ramsey picked off Marcus Mariota in the endzone to put the game on ice.
Meanwhile, the Arizona Cardinals are coming off a spectacular come-from-behind overtime win against the Las Vegas Raiders. The Cardinals were down 20-0 at half-time but managed to cap off a 73-yard drive to tie the game with no time left in regulation. The Cardinals then went on to force two fumbles in overtime, finishing with a scoop-and-score game-winning touchdown by Byron Murphy Jr.
Both of these teams sit at 1-1 after two weeks, but not all teams are created equal. The public is up on the Cardinals after their incredible comeback, even though it was more of a Raiders give away game. People are looking to fade the Super Bowl defending Rams after a sluggish start to their season.
Rams vs. Cardinals Week 3 NFL Betting Picks & Predictions
Rams Offence vs. Cardinals Defense
The Matthew Stafford to Cooper Kupp connection is firing on all cylinders. In the first two games of the season Kupp has totaled 236 yards and three touchdowns on 24 receptions. The Cardinals did a good job to take Davante Adams out of the picture in Week 2, holding him to just two receptions for 12 yards and a touchdown on seven targets. However, Kupp should be more ready for the task.
The Rams also have two quality running backs in Darrell Henderson Jr. and Cam Akers. Rams Coach Sean McVay has been utilizing both of these backs in the early going and both should see success on the ground against this Cardinals defense. The Cardinals have allowed over 200 yards in total on the ground over the first two weeks of the season.
This Rams offence is still trying to get their feet under them after their All-Pro center Andrew Whitworth retired. On the other hand, the Cardinals have not been able to get anything going on defense yet this year. While Arizona’s defense may have won them the game in Week 2, the Raiders were marching down the field in overtime prior to the costly fumble by Hunter Renfrow.
Sean McVay’s Rams squad has had the Cardinals number ever since Kliff Kingsbury took over as their head coach in 2019. The Rams have averaged over 29 points a game versus the Cardinals, while winning five of the six games straight up.
Cardinals Offence vs. Rams Defense
Arizona has scored a total of seven points in the first half of their two games this season. The Cardinals have needed strong fourth quarters in both games to even appear competitive. They scored 14 points in Week 1 against the Chiefs and 16 points last week against the Raiders.
The Cardinals defense is still searching for answers and will be without second-year wide receiver Rondale Moore, as well as DeAndre Hopkins for a third straight week. The team has had to rely on tight end Zach Ertz and undrafted wide receiver Greg Dortch. Running back James Conner is currently listed as questionable after missing parts of the Week 2 overtime victory with an ankle injury.
McVay was undoubtably fiery in the locker room after the Rams’ disastrous Week 2 second-half. The expectation is that this Rams defense will come out fired up. The Rams have allowed just 13 total points in the first half of their two games. Look for Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey to step up in a big divisional matchup in Week 3.
Trends to Monitor
The Rams only loss to the Kingbury led Cardinals was in October of last season when Arizona went into Los Angeles and beat the Rams 37 – 20. McVay is 3-0 in Arizona in the last three years and is looking to make it four straight on Sunday.
The Cardinals have scored a total of 7 points in the first half of their two games this season, although the Rams have allowed just 13 points in the first half. While the sample size is small, this is a trend that I see continuing on Sunday in Arizona.
The Cardinals continue to struggle out of the gates and this makes it tempting to put a bet on the Los Angeles Rams first half prop. The Rams look like the much better team in this matchup, so playing the Rams Halftime/Fulltime line at the plus money being offered at various sites seems like the best bet.
Not every book has that bet offered though, so I will be looking to back the Rams full-game spread as McVay continues his dominance of Kingbury. Los Angeles would be closer to a touchdown favorite if not for the Rams defensive woes against the Falcons and the wild comeback by the Cardinals in Las Vegas.
While we saw last week that anything can happen, the Rams are the team to back in every aspect of this game.
Best NFL Bet: Rams -3.5
