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The New England Patriots are fighting for their NFL playoff lives. At 6-6, the Patriots currently find themselves on the outside looking in for an AFC Playoff spot. As for the Arizona Cardinals, their season is lost.

At 4-8, the Cardinals are out of playoff contention and are now playing for a good spot in the draft. These two teams will meet in Glendale on Monday night, as the Cardinals will host the Patriots.

We’ll now preview each of the teams, and then we’ll give you our NFL Betting prediction for this Patriots versus Cardinals matchup.

Will New England Be Able to Stay in the Playoff Chase? | New England Patriots at Arizona

New England Patriots

The Patriots know that a loss in this one would really put a damper on any hope they have of making the AFC Playoffs. New England has dropped two straight games, and the offense has been the biggest issue. Coming off of a 24-10 loss last Thursday night to the Buffalo Bills, the Patriots know that they need to get better on offense.

Much of the blame on how poor the offense has been placed on Matt Patricia’s shoulders. Patricia, who was the Pats’ defensive coordinator before becoming the head coach of the Detroit Lions, was brought back by Bill Belichick, and now he’s running the offense.

Besides questionable play calling, the Patriots have been plagued by poor play by Mac Jones, a lack of a running game, and not having an explosive wideout.

Defensively, the Patriots have one of the finest units in the NFL. They’re currently ranked seventh in overall defense. They’re giving up just over 310 yards per game. The defense is keeping the Patriots in many games. We’ll see if the defense can contain Kyler Murray and the Cardinals’ offense on Monday night.

Arizona Cardinals

As we stated earlier, the NFL season is pretty much over for the Cardinals. Kliff Kingsbury is on the hot seat, as the Cardinals won’t be returning to the playoffs. Kingsbury has been much-criticized for the lack of innovation in his offense.

Murray hasn’t helped the situation either. His poor play has been another reason for the poor record. Even with DeAndre Hopkins back, the Cardinals’ offense just hasn’t been able to get much going this season.

The Arizona defense hasn’t been much better. Even though there are some good, young pieces on this squad, this defense still gives up way too many significant plays. We’ll see if they’re able to handle a Patriots offense that hasn’t been able to get much done this season.

Prediction

The Patriots come into this road game as the favorite. The oddsmakers have spoken and have made New England a 1.5-point favorite. Arizona’s home stadium hasn’t given them much of a home-field advantage, as the Cardinals have lost six out of their last seven games at home.

The Cardinals haven’t fared much better at home when it comes to the spread. In their last 12 home games, the Cards are 3-9 against the spread.

After this game, we’re thinking that they’ll be 3-10 in their last 13. New England comes to town and wins by a field goal to stay in the playoff hunt.

I have read enough, I need to place my bet now. What to do?