The Arizona Cardinals face off against the Kansas City Chiefs in this NFL Pre-season game. The commencement of the NFL preseason may come bittersweet to Coach Andy Reid after the tragic death of his son.
15* graded play on the Arizona
Cardinals as they take on the Kansas City Chiefs set to start at 8:00 PM ET,
Friday, August 10, 2012. Arizona has had one game under their belt and this
often times is a huge advantage in the preseason matchups. The Cardinals played
four quarterbacks in their 17-10 loss to the Saints in the Hall of Fame Game
last week
There certainly is a quarterback
controversy in Arizona. Perhaps, not a controversy, but a highly competitive
duel between 
Kevin Kolb and John Skelton. Kolb played only a brief period of
time in the Saints game due to sustaining bruised ribs when he was drilled into
the turf. However, Kolb’s first attempt was intercepted. More alarming it was thrown
against a ‘high-school’ type of defense with eight men in the box and Kolb
failing to recognize that it was a cover-2 post snap.
It also brought to my attention
just how good a practice and quarterback coach the Philadelphia Eagles Andy Reid
must be. Kolb played for him and the offensive scheme was diluted when he
played due to injuries to starting quarterbacks. Normally, that is because of
the lack of reps that the backup quarterback has had. In the case of Kolb,
perhaps, Reid knew that Kolb did not have the abilities and experience to read
pro-level defensive schemes.
I also want to mention how
horrific it must be for a parent to lose a child. A parent never for a moment
believes they will outlive their children and it is one of the most devastating
events anyone can go through and endure. However, Reid, is doing what a pro
football coach would do. Go back to work and grieve through the game he and his
son Garrett loved. That should be commended for sure. Kolb’s interception and
subsequent injury allowed John Skelton to get a shot and he went 4-for-6 for 32
pass yards and led his offensive unit on a 14-play, 90-yard drive that ended
with their only touchdown of the game.
Kansas City, though has a solid
starting quarterback in Matt Cassell, but there is a heated competition for the
No. 2 spot between veteran Brady Quinn and fifth round draft choice Ricky
Stanzi. Quinn will come into the game second, behind what I expect to be a very
brief two-series appearance by Cassell. The Chiefs were marred by critical
injuries to key players last season. Tight end and playmaker Tony Moeaki missed
the entire 2001 season with an ACL injury. Strong safety Eric Berry suffered
the same injury in the first game of the regular season and running back Jamaal
Charles was lost for the rest of the campaign in the second game of the regular
season. As a result, be assured that head coach Romeo Crennell will be extra
careful with his key personnel in this game.
Simulator Projections and
Supporting ‘OVER’ System
The simulator shows a high
probability that Arizona will win this game and that 36 or more points will be
scored. It further projects that Arizona will be solid in the running game,
getting between 100 and 125 rushing yards and average between 4.0 and 4.5 per
attempt. Overall, the Cardinals will gain between 300 and 350 total yards and
average 5.0 to 5.5 yards per play which may influence live odds.
All of these projections are
horrid news for the Cardinals. Consider NFL Betting trends and note that in past games, the Cardinals are just
5-15 ATS when then they have allowed 100 to 125 rushing yards since 1993; 0-10 ATS when they allow 4 to 4.5 rushing
yards per attempt since 1993; 1-14 ATS
when they allow 300 to 350 total yards since 1993; 1-12 ATS (-12.2 Units) when
they allow 5 to 5.5 total yards per play since 1993.
NFL Picks: Take the Cardinals for a 5*
graded play and the OVER for a 5* graded play.