Patriots vs Cardinals Free Pick, NFL Free Picks, NFL Predictions 12/15/24
- J.A. Cavalier
- Dec 13, 2024
- 3 min read
New England vs Arizona (ARI -6, 46.5)
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New England Patriots vs. Arizona Cardinals | Sunday, December 15, 2024
The New England Patriots travel to Arizona this Sunday in a game that can either spoil the Cardinal's season or the Patriot's draft position, depending on how much you value meaningless wins. The Patriots were officially eliminated from playoff contention after their week 13 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. While they won't make it to the postseason, the last four games on their schedule are still incredibly important to the development of rookie quarterback Drake Maye, who is assembling a solid rookie campaign.
After beating the Jets in week ten and improving to a record of 6-4, first place in the NFC West, the Cardinals' future looked bright- but since that game, everything has gone downhill. Arizona is currently riding a disappointing three-game losing streak, and sits with playoff chances next to zero- meaning they are desperate for a win this weekend.
Arizona will need to rely on their running game on offense this Sunday, which has been one of the major bright spots of this team. The Cardinals average 139.8 rushing yards per game, sixth best in the NFL, and average 5.2 yards per rush. Running Back James Conner has put together a great year with the Cardinals, tallying 1,196 yards from scrimmage and six total touchdowns. This weekend, he will be facing a Patriots run defense that allows 124.7 yards per game, ranking just 20th in the NFL, a weak spot that needs to be exploited if the Cardinals want to keep their playoff hopes alive.
The Cardinal's passing attack has been subpar this season, ranking 22nd in the NFL in passing yards per game with just 208.2. Kyler Murray also needs to work on limiting turnovers, throwing eight interceptions on the season, and five in the last three games, to just 15 passing touchdowns. The New England secondary can be stiff, allowing just 215.5 passing yards per game, ranking in the top half of the league in
that category. The Patriots also allow just 23.6 points per game and have held opponents to a fourth down conversion rate of 50%, which is the seventh-best in the league.
The Patriots offense, led by the rookie Maye, has been expectedly underwhelming as the former North Carolina standout continues to adjust to the pace of the pros. New England scores the second-fewest points per game in the NFL with just 17 and is averaging just 291.1 yards of total offense per game, also second-worst in the NFL. While the Patriot's completion percentage on offense hasn't been terrible at 63.84%, they still average just 171.5 passing yards per game, the lowest across the entire NFL. Whilst these don't make for pretty reading, Drake Maye has been playing some good football, and these disappointing numbers more reflect the lack of weapons around him. The Patriots' number one offensive option this season has been tight end Hunter Henry, and he has just 610 yards on the season to go with one touchdown.
The Cardinals have been solid at home this season with a record of 4-3 in State Farm Stadium, and it seems like they should be able to get the job done against a young, inexperienced Patriots roster.
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