Arizona Cardinals fans making the drive west on Interstate 10 will walk into a building where their team already won this season, beating the Chargers 26-14 at SoFi Stadium in Week 1. Mike LaFleur’s group hasn’t won since, and the Rams are 12.5-point favorites at FanDuel.
Still, the Cardinals have a few make-or-break players who could swing this one, and the Rams have shown real holes. Here’s the case for and against an upset.
Reasons the Cardinals will beat the Rams in Week 6
Jacoby Brissett always finds the end zone. Brissett has thrown a touchdown pass in all 17 of his Arizona starts, the second-longest active streak in the league behind Jared Goff, per The Associated Press. He threw three against Detroit. The Rams have allowed 30 or more points in seven of their past 14 games, including the playoffs, and Buffalo put up 37 on them Monday. LaFleur stood by his quarterback after the Lions loss. “Jacoby [Brissett] was not the problem. We were a problem as a team today. And, again, that starts with me,” LaFleur said, per Pro Football Talk.
The Rams’ special teams keep costing them. Missed field goals helped sink Los Angeles in overtime against Buffalo, and the Rams brought in Blake Grupe the next day. Sean McVay said afterward that the kicking unit “wasn’t good enough,” per the Rams’ website. SI’s Iain MacMillan put it more bluntly. “It’s the worst special teams in the league and has been for the past couple of years,” MacMillan wrote for SI. A blocked kick or a missed field goal is how a 12.5-point underdog steals one.
Trey McBride can win against linebackers. McBride leads the NFL with 42 catches, and we wrote this week that no player has more catches against linebackers this season. That puts pressure on Rams linebacker Nate Landman. McBride has seen at least 10 targets in every game, and he knows the ball is coming. “The ball is going to find me,” McBride said, via the team’s official site.
Reasons the Rams will beat the Cardinals
Arizona’s defense hasn’t held anyone under 31 points since Week 1. The Cardinals have given up 37 points per game during their four-game losing streak and rank last in the NFL in scoring defense at 32.4 per game. Matthew Stafford leads the league with 1,572 passing yards, and Puka Nacua caught 17 passes Monday. Arizona has kept defensive coordinator Nick Rallis in place, but nothing about the last month suggests a sudden fix against the league’s top offense by yards.
Brissett takes too many sacks. Detroit sacked him five times, and his 21.1% pressure-to-sack rate ranks 29th among 34 qualifying quarterbacks, according to PFF. Left tackle Paris Johnson Jr. is on injured reserve, and Aaron Donald is back with 16 career sacks against Arizona in 20 games. LaFleur knows exactly what he’s facing. “Well, Aaron can just go, and there’s a reason he’s the best to ever do it,” LaFleur said, per the team’s website. With Jeremiyah Love out, Arizona can’t rely on its rookie running back to take pressure off Brissett.
More on the Arizona Cardinals
- Arizona Cardinals Have a Backfield Problem They Can’t Ignore
- Final Injury Report for Cardinals-Rams: Will Jeremiyah Love, Trent McDuffie Play?
- Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Rams NFL Prediction, Picks & Odds for Week 6
- Announcers, Referees and Jersey Combination for Cardinals Week 6 Game
