Panthers Cardinals Odds
Quality quarterback play was lacking for Panthers and Cardinals last season, and they were the worst offensive teams in the NFL as a result.
Both teams have taken steps toward improving their quarterback play. The Panthers drafted Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton with the first pick in the draft and the Cardinals traded for former-Eagle Kevin Kolb.
NFL odds makers believe Kolb will make the bigger impact Sunday and have listed the Cardinals as a seven-point favorite with the total set at 37.
Carolina was the worst offensive team in the league last season. It ranked dead last in both scoring and total offense with 258.4 yards and 12.2 points per game. Most of its offensive problems stemmed from a passing game that averaged a league-worst 143.1 yards per contest.
Arizona wasn’t much better on the offensive side of the football. It finished 31st in the NFL in total offense with 269.3 yards per game and 27th in scoring with 18.1 points per contest. The Cardinals’ passing attack only ranked ahead of Carolina with 182.6 yards per game.
There are still many who doubt whether Newton has what it takes to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. He beat out Jimmy Clausen for the job despite completing just 42.1 percent of his passes in the preseason. He did show off his athletic ability by rushing nine times for 83 yards and a touchdown.
The Cardinals weren’t the only team that wanted to get their hands on Kolb once the lockout ended. He completed nearly 61.0 percent of his throws for 1,197 yards with seven touchdowns and seven interceptions in seven games with the Eagles last season.
While he’s won some games and put up some impressive numbers in some of those wins, Kolb remains largely unproven with only seven career starts under his belt.
Carolina finished with a league-worst 2-14 record last season, but one of those wins was a 19-12 victory against Arizona on Dec. 19
The Panthers have lost their last eight road games, but they have won seven in a row against the Cardinals and are 4-0 all-time at Arizona.
Despite Carolina’s dominance in this series, the Cardinals are getting the majority of the early betting attention.
Fading the Panthers was certainly a smart move last season as they finished 4-12 against the spread. It is also worth noting that the Panthers are 0-6 against the number in their last six road games as an underdog of seven points or less.
As far as the over-under is concerned, these teams finished under the number in last year’s meeting at Carolina. They finished over the total, however, in the last meeting in Arizona (2009).
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