New Orleans Saints Week Seven Preview: Cardinals
Photo Credit: Getty Images
The New Orleans Saints (2-4) will look to rebound after losing at home to the Bengals, 30-26, as they will head to the desert to take on the Arizona Cardinals (2-4) tonight. New Orleans will still be without some of their key players on both sides of the ball as they have not announced who will be starting at quarterback heading into tonight’s matchup.
New Orleans Saints @ Arizona Cardinals Game Information:
Current Records: Saints (2-4) @ Cardinals (2-4)
Date/Time: Tonight @ 7:15 p.m. CT
Where: State Farm Stadium; Glendale, AZ
Where to Watch: Prime Video (Commentators: Play-By-Play Al Michaels, Analyst Kirk Herbstreit, Reporter Kaylee Hartung)
Spread: Cardinals (-2.5)
New Orleans Saints vs. Arizona Cardinals Series History:
The two teams have played 30 times in the regular season and the series is tied at 15 games a piece. The last time the two teams met was in the 2019 regular season where the Saints won over the Cardinals, 31-9, in New Orleans.
Previewing the Saints Heading into Week Seven:
The Saints will be missing some key players on offense and on defense heading into tonight’s matchup against the Cardinals. Michael Thomas, Jarvis Landry, Andrus Peat, Adam Trautman and Marshon Lattimore are all listed as out. New Orleans will be getting back Chris Olave as he missed last week’s game against Cincinnati due to a concussion.
The offense for the Saints will have to do a better job once they are in the red zone against Arizona’s defense. New Orleans was able to move the ball effectively against the Bengals, but they weren’t able to convert in the red zone as they had to settle for field goal attempts. It would lead to Cincinnati getting back into the game and ultimately winning in the final minutes against New Orleans.
The Saints offense was efficient as they piled up 399 total yards of offense (171 passing yards and 228 rushing yards). New Orleans had the opportunity to put the game away but their offense stalled on the final two possessions against the Bengals.
On the other hand, the Saints defense continued to struggle letting up big plays as Ja’Marr Chase ripped off a 60-yard touchdown to put the Bengals up late, 30-26. New Orleans was able to contain Joe Mixon and the Cincinnati run game, but the issue was containing them through the air.
The Bengals were able to pick up 273 yards through the air. Not only was defending the pass the problem, especially with Lattimore out of that game, but they were unable to bring pressure to the quarterback. The Bengals offensive line was able to give Joe Burrow the protection to find open receivers. The Saints on the game only had three total sacks on Burrow.
Scouting the Saints Opponent: Cardinals:
Like the Saints, the Cardinals have gotten off to a rough start to the 2022 campaign. Arizona is coming off a 19-9 loss on the road to the Seattle Seahawks. It was a day that the Cardinals offense struggled to find the endzone against the Seahawks defense as they had to settle for four field goals by Matt Prater.
The Cardinals will be getting one of their key weapons back as DeAndre Hopkins will be active after serving a six-game suspension to open up the season. Arizona will be without Marquise Brown, Dennis Gardeck, Rodney Hudson, Justin Pugh and Darrel Williams heading into tonight’s matchup against New Orleans.
Kyler Murray will look to give the Saints fits as he leads the Cardinals in passing and rushing. Murray is coming off a game where he rushed for 100 yards on 10 carries. The absence of James Conner has opened up more rushing opportunities for Murray. He has struggled to find the end zone through the air as he only has six passing touchdowns on the year.
The Cardinals defense will be going up against a short-handed Saints offense in tonight’s matchup. Arizona’s defense has allowed 23.7 points per game and 337.3 total yards per game. They have only allowed 20 points in their last three games of the season.
The Cardinals pass rush has been a bright spot for an underrated defense. Arizona’s offense will be looking to feed off of their defense as they will look to bring pressure towards Dalton.
Prediction for Saints @ Cardinals:
This is a must-win game for both teams as they have started the season on a lull. The running game for the Saints behind Alvin Kamara has carried the offense for the last few weeks as the offensive line continues to improve.
Thursday night games this season have been on the low-scoring side and this matchup seems to be no different as both offenses have been struggling, especially the Cardinals.
Once again, the Saints will have to try and grind out a win with some of their key players being out. New Orleans and Arizona will be in for a defensive slugfest on Thursday night. The Cardinals will get the win in a close game in the desert and end their two-game losing skid.
Prediction: New Orleans Saints 17, Arizona Cardinals 21
-Tyler Eschette - Olde City Sports Network/ Sports Scramble, CFB C2C (College Football, Coast 2 Coast)
*Photo Credit- USA Today Sports*