The Arizona Cardinals might have floundered to a dismal 3-13 record a year ago, but almost everything is new in the desert heading into the 2019 NFL regular season. You see, after just one year under former head coach Steve Wilks and 2018 first round draft pick, former Cal quarterback Josh Rosen, the Cardinals have altered the entire landscape of their franchise by hiring former Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury and drafting Heisman Trophy-winning former Oklahoma star Kyler Murray with the top overall pick in this year’s draft.
Now, whether the Cards take off immediately and surpass their low win total from a year ago or not, there are several key things you need to know about Arizona as we move closer to the start of training camps and football flying everywhere.
And before getting started, be sure to check out the latest NFL odds for the 2019 season.
Arizona Cardinals 2019 Season Win/Loss Total Odds & Predictions
Arizona Cardinals 2019 NFL Season Betting Guide
Betting Statistics
- ATS: 3-13 (W-L) / 7-8-1 (ATS) / 3-5-0 (Home) / 4-3-1 (Away) / 6-8-0 (Grass) / 1-0-1 (Turf)
- O/U: 7-9 (W-L) / 2-6-0 (Home) / 5-3-0 (Away) / 5-9-0 (Grass) / 2-0-0 (Turf) / 40.6 (Total)
As you can see, the Cardinals went 3-13 SU a year ago while recording two of their wins against NFC West division rival San Francisco and two of their three wins on the road. Arizona almost recorded a. .500 ATS mark by going 7-8-1 ATS, including 4-3-1 ATS on the road. Despite ranking dead last in scoring, Arizona went 7-9 O/U, including a 5-3 O/U mark on the road.
Offense
- Total Yards: 241.6 / Rank 32
- Passing Yards: 157.7 / Rank 32
- Rushing Yards: 83.9 /Rank 32
- Points Scored: 14.1 / Rank 32
- Field Goal %: 70.6 / Rank 30
Under the direction of Rosen, the 10th overall pick in last year’s draft and Wilks, a ‘defensive’ coach who was the defensive backs coach in Carolina and is now a coordinator for the Browns, Arizona finished dead last in almost every offensive category there is including scoring (14.1 ppg). However, NFL fans and betting buffs should expect a much different and improved offense in 2019 because of the additions of the offensive-minded Kingsbury and the super-athletic Murray who passed for 4,361 yards with 42 touchdowns and just seven interceptions for Oklahoma last season.
Defense
- Total Yards: 358.8 / Rank 20
- Passing Yards: 203.9 / Rank 4
- Rushing Yards: 154.9 /Rank 32
- Points Allowed: 26.6 / Rank 26
- Field Goal %: 80.6 / Rank 8
Defensively, Arizona finished 20th overall and an uninspiring 26th in points allowed, but the Cards excelled against the pass by finishing a stellar fourth in passing yards allowed.
Team Leaders
- Touchdowns: David Johnson (10)
- Rushing: David Johnson (940)
- Passing: Josh Rosen (2278)
- Receiving: Larry Fitzgerald (734)
- Sacks: Chandler Jones (13.0)
- Interceptions: Tre Boston (3)
Last season, former Pro Bowl running back David Johnson led the team in rushing yards and touchdowns while the ageless Larry Fitzgerald somehow managed to lead the team in receiving yards despite being in his 15th season in the league.
To address some of their offseason needs heading into their new era, the Cards pulled off what looks like a series of smart offseason free agent additions. Arizona added aging future hall of Fame linebacker Terrell Suggs, tight end Charles Clay, linebackers Brooks Reed and Jordan Hicks as well as a trio of veteran cornerbacks in Tramaine Brock, Josh Shaw and Robert Alford.
Now, the new-look Cards will look to take the first step in their rebuild and many believe they could surprise in 2019. Better yet, thanks to my expert NFL analysis, you’re going to find out just how many games Arizona is going to win in 2019. Let’s get started.
Outlook
While I’m expecting Arizona to be a lot better and more explosive offensively, I don’t know how much they’re going to improve over their three wins from a year ago in the first season of their new rebuild. In addition to their six difficult NFC West division games against two teams that made the playoffs a year ago, the Cardinals also face three AFC North teams that all look like possible playoff teams in 2019 (Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Cleveland) and three more NFC South playoff contenders (New Orleans, Atlanta and Carolina). I don’t see Arizona reaching the. .500 mark this coming season, but the Cardinals will be entertaining at the very least and after last season, that’s an improvement in and of itself.
