Best bets for the Arizona Cardinals in Week 5 (Upset, anyone?)

The Arizona Cardinals are bruised up and banged up as they limp into their Week 5 matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles. 

Last week, I finished a paltry 1-2 in the best bets column. But hey, it wasn’t entirely my fault; I wasn’t the one who tried going for it early in the game when the Arizona Cardinals were in field goal range. A subsequent pick six in the second quarter courtesy of an errant Kyler Murray throw to Frankie Luvu sealed my fate regarding my bet the Redbirds would score first.

They did snag the moneyline, but I finished just 1.5 points shy of striking the over. I would have gotten it too had the Panthers converted a two-point conversion with 4:47 to go in the contest. But it is what it is, and it dropped me to 7-5 on the season, placing me at 12-12 overall when you also count in my favorite prop bets for 2022.

So this week, the goal is to regain that winning record. Here are my three favorite bets for the week to make that happen.

1 – UNDER 48.5 (-105)

Yes, the Arizona Cardinals and Philadelphia Eagles should make this one a defensive outing. With two very good defenses going into this one, look for both teams to score in the lower to mid-20s, but not quite enough to reach that 48.5 OVER.

While the Eagles have an outstanding offense on paper, a closer look shows they get hot only during certain quarters. If the Cardinals keep them at bay during those hot streaks, it could be a long one coming for Philadelphia.

2 – Philadelphia Eagles SCORE FIRST (-138)

The Cardinals have yet to score first all season, so they are giving me no reason to think they will this week. Besides, when they are in prime position to pull off the first score of the contest, they find a way to keep themselves either out of the end zone, or even from kicking the field goal.

It was a mistake I made last week that I shouldn’t have made. So the best thing to do here is to go with what’s been working, or not been working, for the Cardinals in 2022.

3 – First drive ends in a PUNT – Arizona Cardinals or Eagles (-115)

This one is the result of the very first drive of the game, regardless of who has the football. The Cardinals have yet to show up in the first quarter, so the odds of them punting after their first possession are pretty good.

And once again, the Eagles are just too streaky of a team to trust, having scored most of their previous 53 points in just two of their last eight quarters. The odds of punting if the first drive belongs to them are also high.

(Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change)