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San Francisco 49ers at Arizona Cardinals NFL Picks & Odds

The NFC West leading Arizona Cardinals host the struggling San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football in Week 10 action. Arizona is looking to win its first division title in 33 years and odds makers don’t think they’ll have much of a problem extending their division lead this week. BetUS has listed the Cardinals as 9.5-point favorites with the total set at 46.

The Cardinals are off to a 5-3 start this season after finishing 8-8 last year under then first year head coach Ken Whisenhunt. As expected the Cardinals have improved while the 49ers have not met expectations. San Francisco comes into this contest at just 2-6, appearing to be on its way to another disappointing season. The 49ers were hit hard by the injury bug last year, but the team was hopeful heading in to this year’s campaign after a 3-3 finish in 2007. Arizona is boasting its best record at the halfway mark since going 5-3 to start the 1984 season. It currently has a 3-game lead in the West, which gives them a great chance to earn their first division championship since the team was the St. Louis Cardinals in 1975. Arizona knows they are far from out of the woods as there were teams last season that were 6-2 at this points and didn’t make the playoffs.

The Arizona Cardinals high-powered offense is leading the NFL with a 29.3 ppg average and they have kicked that number up to 34 ppg at home. Arizona has defended its home turf well, winning five straight at home and 9 of 11 in the desert under Whisenhunt. The Cardinals know that they are going to have to get the ground game going if they are going to keep racking up big point totals. Arizona benched starting tailback Edgerrin James in the Cardinals’ 34-13 win over St. Louis last Sunday, replacing him with hard-running rookie Tim Hightower. Hightower was picked up in the fifth-round in the 2008 draft. He looked very solid in the win, rushing for 109 yards on 22 carries which included a 30-yard touchdown run. Experienced veteran Kurt Warner continues to be on the money through the air, connecting on 23 of 34 passes for 342 yards and two touchdowns last week. Warner has been held under 200 yards passing only twice this season and one of the teams to do it was the 49ers in week 1. Arizona won that game 23-13. If you think Arizona has another double digit win in it against the 49ers, bet the Cardinals at -9.5 at BetUS.

San Francisco’s struggles led to the firing of Mike Nolan seven games into his fourth season. He has been replaced by former Bears star linebacker Mike Singletary on an interim basis. Singletary has quickly shaken things up too. He benched the turnover prone J.T. O’Sullivan in the second quarter of a 34-13 loss to Seattle on October 26th and also sent tight end Vernon Davis to the locker room with more than 10 minutes remaining in that game. Singletary then proceeded to get their attention even more by what he said in the postgame press conference: “I’d rather play with 10 people and just get penalized all the way until we have to do something else rather than play with 11 when I know that right now that person is not sold out to be a part of this team… “It is more about them than it is about the team. Cannot play with them, cannot win with them, cannot coach with them. Can’t do it. I want winners. I want people that want to win.”

Singletary has had a bye week to collect his thoughts and to get his team prepared to play. He has made the decision to start QB Shaun Hill in this Monday night contest while the status of Davis is uncertain. Hill played the second half of San Francisco’s loss to Seattle, completing 15 of 23 passes for 173 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. Singletary’s spat with Davis came after the former first-round pick drew an unnecessary roughness penalty for slapping the head of a Seahawks defender. Singletary sent him to the bench, and later told him to go to the locker room. The 49ers have reacted by signing tight end Sean Ryan last Monday, either to further get Davis’ attention or to go in a different direction at that spot. If you think a week of rest and prep and Singletary’s hot-headed tactics will have San Francisco fired up this week, bet the 49ers at +9.5 at BetUS.

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