Wild Card Weekend is fast approaching, and here at BetdaqTips we’ll strive to ensure that you’re well-informed before deciding where to invest your money. With that in mind, here are a few tidbits of information that may be of interest:
Arizona Cardinals @ Carolina Panthers (Car -6.5, 38)
– As of Wednesday, we still don’t know whether Arizona quarterback Drew Stanton (knee) will be able to play, or if the Cards will be forced to go with Ryan Lindley for the third consecutive game. Stanton has been marginally better than Lindley this season, but neither has been able to fill the shoes of injured starter Carson Palmer.
– Arizona is an excellent road team, covering in 9 of their past 10 road games against teams with losing records.
– The Panthers have held four straight opponents to 17 points or fewer, while the Cardinals have failed to reach 20 points in seven consecutive games.
– Carolina running back Jonathan Stewart has really come on over the past few weeks, rushing for over 500 combined yards in the team’s past five games. The Arizona defense, despite being excellent against the run all season, has surrendered 473 combined rushing yards in their last two games.
– The Cardinals have struggled against mobile quarterbacks this season, surrendering 278 combined rushing yards to San Francisco’s Colin Kaepernick and Seattle’s Russell Wilson. Carolina quarterback Cam Newton led the Panthers in rushing in their division-clinching win over Atlanta last week and is one of the NFL’s premier “running” quarterbacks.
Baltimore Ravens @ Pittsburgh Steelers (Pit -3, 46.5)
– Pittsburgh running back Le’Veon Bell, who led the AFC in rushing this season and is also a dynamic receiver out of the backfield, may be forced to miss Saturday’s game due to a knee injury that he sustained in a collision with Cincinnati’s Reggie Nelson last week. The injury has been declared a “hyperextension”, but it’s severe enough that it prompted the team to sign ex-Cleveland tailback Ben Tate this week.
– Baltimore has been excellent against the run this season, surrendering just 88 yards per game on the ground. Their run defense will be further strengthened this week by the return of All-Pro tackle Haloti Ngata from a 4-game suspension. Ngata is a disruptive force in the middle of the Baltimore defense who has been a thorn in Pittsburgh’s side for years.
– The Steelers suffered a couple of head-scratching losses this season but they’ve been a great bet when faced with quality opposition, covering in 8 straight games against teams with winning records.
– The Ravens have covered just once in the last 6 meetings between these two teams.
– Ben Roethlisberger had the best season of his career in 2014, throwing for 4,952 yards and 32 touchdowns while being intercepted just 9 times. This week he’ll face a terrible Baltimore secondary that he absolutely torched the last time these teams met, completing 25 of 37 passes for 340 yards and 6 touchdowns in a 20-point Steelers win.
Cincinnati Bengals @ Indianapolis Colts (Ind -3.5, 49.5)
– These teams met in Indianapolis back in Week 7 and the Colts handed the Bengals a humiliating 27-0 defeat. The Cincinnati offense finished the game with just 135 total yards, while the Colts racked up a season-best 506.
– Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton’s postseason numbers are atrocious. In three career playoff games, Dalton has thrown 6 interceptions to only 1 touchdown and has a QB rating of 56.2. Not coincidentally, the Bengals have not won a playoff game with Dalton as their quarterback.
– As the total for this game approaches 50 (currently 49.5 at BETDAQ), it may be wise to remember that the Under is 6-0 in Cincinnati’s last six road games and 4-0 in Indianapolis’ last four games overall.
– The Colts rank 11th in total defense and have held seven opponents below 20 points this season. However, they allowed 42 points to Dallas two weeks ago and have surrendered 135 combined points in their last three playoff games. Are they to be trusted?
– The Cincinnati offense may be without their best player on Sunday, as Pro Bowl receiver A.J. Green sustained a concussion against Pittsburgh last week and is officially listed as “questionable” for this week’s game. Green is going through the NFL’s concussion protocol, so his status will be determined by the doctors. This situation should be monitored closely.
Detroit Lions @ Dallas Cowboys (Dal -7, 48)
– Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, the lynchpin of a defense that ranked 1st against the run this season, was initially suspended for this week’s game after intentionally stomping on Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers. However, Suh’s suspension was overturned on appeal this week, which means the big man will be out there on Sunday, gumming up the works in the middle, as always. This is especially important against a Dallas team that boasts the league’s leading rusher, DeMarco Murray.
– The Cowboys were a much better team away from home this season, as they won all 8 of their road games but were just 4-4 in the friendly confines of JerryWorld. That being said, their last home game was a 42-7 pasting of the Indianapolis Colts.
– The last two games between these teams have been wild affairs, with the Lions winning both times in dramatic, come-from-behind fashion. The first time, in 2011, Dallas jumped out to a 27-3 lead before eventually losing 31-30; and the second time, in 2013, Detroit again erased a double-digit deficit behind 14 receptions and 329 (!) receiving yards from Calvin Johnson. The man known as “Megatron” will now test a Dallas defense that ranks 26th against the pass.
– The Lions have covered just 8 times in their last 29 road games and just once in their last 7 games against teams with winning records. And oh, by the way– they’ve won exactly 1 playoff game since 1957. Of course, that win came over– you guessed it– the Dallas Cowboys, way back in 1991.
