Philadelphia Eagles vs. Arizona Cardinals Preview (10/9/2022): Betting Odds, Prediction, Depth Chart

By Noah Rosenstein | Oct 05, 2022, 9:42am | Updated: 1 year ago

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The Philadelphia Eagles (4-0) will try to remain the only undefeated team in the NFL when they travel to Glendale, AZ to take on the Arizona Cardinals (2-2) on Sunday, October 9. This will be the third week in a row where the Eagles square off against a member of the 2017-18 Super Bowl Champions, as they will reunite with tight end Zach Ertz after meetings with Carson Wentz and Doug Pederson over the last two weeks. The Eagles will look to stay undefeated against the first opponent they have faced this season that had a winning record last season. The Cardinals will be looking to get above .500 for the first time this season. Let’s take a look at the odds, injuries and depth charts for this Eagles vs. Cardinals matchup and see my picks and predictions for the game.

Philadelphia Eagles vs. Arizona Cardinals Betting Odds

The Eagles opened as 5.5-point favorites on the road with moneyline odds at -250. It’s not a huge surprise that the undefeated Eagles are such heavy favorites in this game, but a 5.5-point spread on the road is a pretty big number to cover. If that line moves further in the Eagles’ direction, there could be some good value on the Cardinals. The over/under for this matchup opened at 49.5, the second highest number on the week 5 slate (after Raiders/Chiefs). As of Tuesday, about 70% of the public money is being bet on the Eagles ATS and the over.

Philadelphia Eagles vs. Arizona Cardinals Prediction

Until they give me a reason not to, I am not betting against the Birds. I know 5.5 points is a pretty big number to cover on the road, but as we’ll get into further below, they have enough advantages in this game that I feel confident that they can cover the spread for the fourth consecutive week.

My biggest hesitation is the handful of injuries to key guys the Eagles suffered in week 4, but with solid depth and at least some of those questionable guys likely to suit up, it doesn’t scare me away. Another potential mitigating factor is the possibility of a trap game, as the Eagles square off against division rival Dallas next week with a potentially healthy Dak Prescott. But there again, it seems like Nick Sirianni and Jalen Hurts both have the right mental approach to take the season one week at a time (pardon the cliché, but in this case it fits), so that doesn’t scare me either.

The Cardinals may be 2-2 with losses to two Super Bowl contenders, but their two wins haven’t been that impressive either, and the Eagles have also emerged as a Super Bowl contender this year. The Cardinals may be a team that hovers around .500 all season by beating the bad teams and losing to the good ones. The undefeated Eagles are most definitely the latter.

My prediction: Eagles win 31-24, Eagles cover, over 49.5 points

Betting Trends

The Eagles are 4-1 ATS in their last five games in October and 7-3 in their last 10 games in week five, but the Cardinals are also 4-0 ATS in their last four games in week five, so something’s got to give
The Cardinals are 1-5 ATS in their last six games following an ATS win and 1-5 ATS following their last six straight-up wins
The Cardinals are 0-7 ATS in their last seven home games and 1-6 in their last seven home games vs. teams with a winning road record
Eagles are 0-5 ATS in their last five meetings with Arizona, and 1-7 in the last eight
The favorite is 4-0 ATS in the last four meetings between these teams

Key Injuries

Philadelphia Eagles Injuries: LT Jordan Mailata* (Q – shoulder), RG Isaac Seumalo* (Q – ankle), CB Darius Slay* (Q – back/forearm), CB Avonte Maddox** (Q – ankle), RB Boston Scott** (Q – rib), DE Derek Barnett (IR – Knee), OT Andre Dillard (IR – forearm)

*Left week 4 game early with injury
**Missed week 4 game

Arizona Cardinals Injuries: WR A.J. Green* (Q – knee), DT Rashard Lawrence* (Q – hand), LB Ezekiel Turner* (Q – ankle)

*Missed week 4 game

Key Matchups

Check out the key matchups and mismatches for Philadelphia Eagles vs. Arizona Cardinals below.

Eagles offensive line vs. Cardinals defensive front

The Eagles’ offensive line is the best in the league and has been a huge part of their strong start to the season. Whether they were giving Jalen Hurts all the time he needed to pick apart the Vikings and Commanders, or they were opening up running lanes for Miles Sanders to have a career rushing day against the Jaguars, they have been the foundation of success for the Eagles’ offense. But now they are banged up and potentially missing two starters in LT Jordan Mailata and RG Isaac Seumalo. The backups at those positions, Jack Driscoll and Sua Opeta, respectively, are well-regarded and generally played well after entering the game against the Jaguars. However, they are still backups that raise some questions about how dominant this line can be against a questionable Cardinals pass rush.

The Cardinals are the second-most blitz-heavy team in the NFL so far this season (42.2% of their snaps are blitzes), and they are 10th in the league in pressure rate, but for all that pressure they are dead last in sacks with just four so far this season. They do have the 5th-ranked rushing defense in the league this season, but that can be attributed to teams simply focusing on the pass against them, as they have faced the 4th fewest rushing attempts and are middle of the pack in terms of yards per carry allowed (4.3). The Eagles’ offensive line should be able to dominate in this game, but will the injuries be too much too overcome?

Eagles wide receivers vs. Cardinals secondary

The Cardinals secondary is the most exploitable aspect of their defense. They are currently 23rd against the pass (256 yards per game) and 29th in net yards allowed per pass attempt (7.2 yards) despite being 7th in average depth of target against them (7.0 yards). They have given up the most yards after the catch in the league so far this season. The Eagles are the sixth best passing offense (270 yards per game), which likely would be even higher if not for the rain-soaked conditions in week 4 that forced a very run-heavy game plan. The Cardinals simply have nobody in the secondary that can match up with A.J. Brown or DeVonta Smith. If Jalen Hurts can continue to show the improvement he’s shown as a passer this season, it could be a big day for the Eagles wide receivers.

Cardinals WRs vs. Eagles secondary

The Eagles’ secondary is banged up. Slot corner Avonte Maddox is expected to be out for the second consecutive game, and number one corner Darius Slay is questionable. Meanwhile, the Cardinals got speedy slot receiver Rondale Moore back in week 4, while third-year receiver Greg Dortch has played well in the slot in his absence. Moore didn’t do much in his first game back, but he did take the field on 83% of the snaps, second most of any Cardinals wide receiver. In week 4, the Jaguars found ways for their speedy slot receiver Jamal Agnew to exploit the Eagles’ backup nickel corner, Josiah Scott. With Moore’s game breaking speed, it could only take one big play to turn the game around. This is a matchup worth watching in this contest.

Philadelphia Eagles Depth Chart

QB: Jalen Hurts
RB1: Miles Sanders
RB2: Kenneth Gainwell
LWR: A.J. Brown
SWR: Quez Watkins
RWR: Devonta Smith
TE1: Dallas Goedert

Philadelphia Eagles Team Pages

Arizona Cardinals Depth Chart

QB: Kyler Murray
RB1: James Conner
RB2: Eno Benjamin
LWR: Marquise Brown
RWR: A.J. Green
SWR: Rondale Moore
TE1: Zach Ertz

Arizona Cardinals Team Pages

Noah Rosenstein

Noah hails from Philadelphia and is a diehard Philly sports fan. He graduated from Penn where he was a sports writer and editor for the student newspaper and also spent a summer covering the Baltimore Orioles for MLB.com. He has been playing fantasy sports since before live stats were a thing, and he has enjoyed learning the nuances of DFS in recent years. As a current resident of Florida, he is hoping the wave of sports betting legalization will eventually reach his home state.