Cardinals vs Cowboys Prediction, Betting Odds, and Our Best Bet for Monday Night Football

The Arizona Cardinals are heading to Dallas in primetime, desperate to snap a 5-game losing streak, while the Cowboys return home looking to prove they’re still contenders after a confusing stretch of highs and lows. This MNF showdown features two teams on the edge — one trying to stop the bleeding, the other trying to find consistency. There’s a lot to unpack here, but there’s still some bets to be made.

Cardinals Lean on Brissett While Murray Watches

While Kyler Murray could be active, he’s not expected to start. That job will again fall to veteran Jacoby Brissett, who’s done a decent job under center in the past 2 weeks. Still, the Cardinals haven’t won since September, and their 2-5 record goes to show a team that can’t quite finish games. All 5 of their recent losses have come by a combined 13 points, including 3 that ended with walk-off field goals. They’re close, but that doesn’t count as a win.

The Cowboys, sitting at 3-4-1, aren’t in a much better spot record-wise, but from most analysts’ perspective, the expectations are very different. Dallas is loaded with offensive talent, yet they’re simply too inconsistent. One week, they’re torching Washington 44-22, the next they’re getting boat-raced by Denver 44-24. It’s tough to make sense of it. Head coach Mike McCarthy and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer are under pressure to stabilize this rollercoaster as we’re entering the second half of the season. With a bye week coming and a big Thanksgiving game on the horizon, this is a must-win spot.

Cowboys Favored by 3.5 at Home

Bookmakers have Dallas as a 3.5-point favorite over Arizona, with the total set at 53.5 points. The moneyline sits around -175 for the Cowboys, while the Cardinals are priced as underdogs at +145 to win outright. This line really goes to show the home-field advantage and the public’s lack of faith in Arizona’s offense without Murray fully healthy.

This is a game where the bookmakers aren’t too far off the mark. Nobody knows what team we’ll get from Dallas this week, but we definitely know what Arizona is bringing.

Matchup Breakdown and Key Stats

Arizona’s offense continues to struggle as it ranks 22nd in scoring with 21.9 PPG and 21st in total yards with 333.4 YPG. Brissett has steadied the passing attack — somewhat — but the overall production is still very underwhelming. Their leading rusher is Kyler Murray with just 173 yards, and he’s already missed multiple games. That speaks volumes about the state of the Cardinal’s backfield. The passing game leans heavily on TE Trey McBride, who leads the team with 421 receiving yards and 4 TDs. You can bet that the Dallas defense will be honing in on him.

Defensively, the Cardinals have been surprisingly competent. They’re allowing just 22 PPG, which is good for the 12th best in the league, and hold opponents to 335.7 total yards per game, which ranks inside the top 15. These aren’t elite numbers, but most likely the reason the Cardinals at least remain competitive in some of these games. Josh Sweat leads the team with 5 sacks, while veteran Calais Campbell gears up for his 250th career start, which is an impressive milestone for the 39-year-old defensive lineman.

On the other side of the field, Dallas boasts a top-5 offense. That might be surprising, but the numbers don’t lie. They rank 2nd in the league in scoring at 30.8 PPG, 4th in total offense with 391.4 YPG, and 1st in time of possession. Dak Prescott has thrown for a whopping 2,069 yards, with 16 TDs and just 5 picks. Receiver George Pickens has emerged as Dak’s primary weapon, hauling in 43 catches for 685 yards and 6 TDs.

The ground game is no slouch either, where Javonte Williams has rushed for 633 yards and 8 TDs, which gives the Cowboys much-needed balance. Dallas will likely try to establish him early to soften up an Arizona defense that ranks 24th against the run with 100.9 yards allowed per game.

The real issue for the Cowboys is their defense. They’re allowing 31.3 PPG, which is dead last in the league. They’ve also given up 404.6 total yards per game, including a league-worst 146 rushing yards allowed. That makes them extremely vulnerable, even against a Cardinals team struggling to run the ball.

Despite those issues, Dallas still gets pressure in the pocket. They have 15 sacks compared to Arizona’s 12, and linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr. leads the team with 58 tackles. But turnovers are scarce as both teams have just 4 interceptions this year, tied for 23rd.

Why Dallas Should Cover

If this turns into a shootout, Dallas wins every time, and there’s no denying that. Arizona just doesn’t have the firepower to hang with Prescott, Pickens, and Williams for a full 4 quarters. The Cowboys are also 5th in 3rd-down conversion rate at 43.2%, while Arizona’s defense ranks 28th in that same category. That means long drives and clock control for Dallas throughout the game.

While Arizona’s defense is undoubtedly competitive, its offense puts too much pressure on it by failing to sustain drives. If Brissett can’t produce points early, this could get out of hand by halftime. And even though the Cardinals have kept things relatively close over their dismal losing stretch, they’ve yet to show they can actually finish the job.

Dallas will be motivated after last week’s blowout loss, and with the bye week ahead, we expect them to come out swinging for the fences.

Prediction

Dallas is simply the better team across the board, especially on offense. Brissett may keep Arizona in this one early, but eventually, the Cowboys’ talent will pull away. We’re expecting a big game from Dak Prescott as Dallas gets back on track.

• Prediction: Cowboys 27, Cardinals 20
• Best Bet: Take Dallas -3.5 at -105

The Cowboys should win this game by at least a TD, if not more. Even with their defensive flaws, they have the offensive weapons to outpace an Arizona team that hasn’t scored 27+ points all season. The spread is reasonable given how close Arizona has kept games, but the Cowboys are simply in a different class when they play up to potential.