Do the Niners even manage to grab first place in the NFC?

In the NFC West, it comes to the duel of opposites on the last game day, which is naturally also reflected in the betting odds. When the San Francisco 49ers host the Arizona Cardinals, a bet on the home side therefore brings very little value. The bookmakers put the probability of a tenth success in a row for the Californians at just under 90 per cent.

The Niners continue their winning streak and have now gone nine games without a defeat. The team catapulted its 3-4 win-loss record to 12-3. Last week’s task against the Raiders, however, turned out to be much more difficult than expected. On the one hand, this was due to the fact that the statistically best defence in the league once again revealed known weaknesses, and on the other hand, minor mistakes crept in with rookie quarterback Brock Purdy.

Arizona, on the other hand, is on track to receive at least one top-5 pick in the upcoming draft. The franchise from Glendale, for example, brought it to just four wins in the current season. If they suffer their seventh loss in a row at “Levi’s Stadium”, they will probably be allowed to select their desired player safely at the fourth position in the upcoming selection of college talents.

San Francisco 49ers – stats & current form

The thriller between the Raiders and the 49ers last Sunday night went into overtime. In the end, the Niners narrowly retained the upper hand with 37:34. Las Vegas became only the third team this season to score more than 20 points against DeMeco Ryans’ strong defence. In the process, they relentlessly attacked all weak spots throughout the game. The 500 offensive yards the Raiders recorded were nearly 200 yards more than the Niners’ defence has allowed on average so far. With an eye on the playoffs, this was perhaps the important “shot across the bow” at the right time, also because the rookie quarterback suddenly found himself in a new situation.

Tricky situation perfectly mastered

Because midway through the third quarter, the 49ers – for the first time since 23-year-old Brock Purdy took over at quarterback due to injuries – were down by ten points. In this phase he proved once again that he rightly enjoys the confidence of head coach Kyle Shanahan. He carried out the offensive scheme perfectly and led the offence to three scores in a row. Once again he could rely on his playmakers George Kittle, Christian McCaffrey and Brandon Aiyuk, who all scored a touchdown each. CMC even managed a successful end zone visit in each of the last six games. So between the 49ers and Cardinals, the odds on that should not be ignored. However, he did not score a touchdown in the 38:10 win in the first duel with Arizona.

With the win against the Raiders and the Vikings’ loss in Green Bay, the team from the Bay Area jumped into second place in the NFC. With a win against the Cardinals, they could celebrate a perfect division record with six wins from six games. In addition, they would also have the chance to win the NFC’s number-one seed and the associated break in the wild-card weekend. However, that would also require a loss by the Eagles.

The offense averages 25.8 points and in the “rematch” between the 49ers and Cardinals, our prediction is that the home side will definitely advance into this sphere. In the aforementioned first duel at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico, they scored 38 points – as already written.

Key Players:
QB: Brock Purdy
RB: Christian McCaffrey
WR: Brandon Aiyuk
TE: George Kittle
K: Robbie Gould

Arizona Cardinals – stats & current form

The Cardinals’ season is likely coming to a scoreless end and a major shake-up is imminent. The franchise’s playing days have been marked by internal problems, scandals and injuries. Quarterback Kyler Murray, who signed a new contract in Arizona last offseason, played only eleven games due to injuries. His current injury is likely to be a big issue during the upcoming summer break, when most of the coaching staff will likely be replaced.

Murray and McCoy injured, McSorley gebenched

Which means the Cardinals are now down to their fourth quarterback. Last week David Blough made his debut in the Arizona dress and celebrated a thoroughly successful debut, even if the result was not right in the end. Due to the good performance, our prediction between the 49ers and Cardinals is clearly that he will be allowed to play from the start again. In week eleven, when both teams faced each other for the first time, the Cards still started Colt McCoy as playmaker.

In the absence of the best pass receiver DeAndre Hopkins, rookie tight end Trey McBride was particularly convincing with seven receptions. He also recorded his first touchdown in the NFL. Even if Hopkins can play against the Niners, McBride will remain a key target for Blough.

The Cardinals defence is allowing the third most points of any NFL team, averaging 25.7. Now, though, they’ll expect an offense that has really been on fire lately, averaging 32.6 points over the past five games. While the Cardinals haven’t conceded more than 30 points per game since week eleven, that wouldn’t surprise us in the 49ers vs. Cardinals game. The betting odds on this are an attractive 2.00 on the markets.

Key Players:
QB: David Blough
RB: James Connor
WR: DeAndre Hopkins
TE: Zach Ertz
K: Matt Prater

San Francisco 49ers – Arizona Cardinals Head-to-head comparison / H2H record

While San Francisco has only suffered one defeat at “Levi’s Stadium” – 23:44 against the Chiefs – Arizona has celebrated three of its four victories this season on foreign turf. The visitors won the last two meetings between the two franchises in Santa Clara. With the odds spread ahead of the 63rd meeting between the 49ers and Cardinals, however, it is extremely risky to bet on another win for the visitors.

Whether it comes to the matchup Purdy vs. Blough or Purdy vs. McCoy – it would be a first. The Niners quarterback is the first rookie since 2004 to win each of his first four games.

San Francisco 49ers – Arizona Cardinals Tip

It is probably relatively clear in which direction our prediction goes in the duel of San Francisco 49ers vs. Arizona Cardinals. It is extremely difficult to find attractive odds with such a clear distribution of the favourite or underdog role. Last week, the Raiders proved impressively that they can also score against the Niners’ strong defence. That’s why we wouldn’t be surprised if the over/under limit of 40 points set by the bookmakers is reached.

However, we see more value in the recommendation that the home side can score 27 points.

You should also keep an eye on the betting opportunities on touchdowns. At least three of the hosts are very likely and we consider a total of five to be absolutely realistic.