Streaks Weekly Issue 6

NFL Playoff Picture Coming Into Focus

This week our NFL contests feature four teams we expect to see in the NFC playoffs this year. The Thursday night matchup is the game of the week, as the 6-1 Green Bay Packers visit the 7-0 Arizona Cardinals, and on Sunday night, two of the league’s most balanced offenses face off as the 5-1 Cowboys travel to Minnesota to take on the 3-3 Vikings. Check out our game previews below.

Congrats to the winners of our first two NBA contests; you will go down in the history books, Jackie from Texas and Joe from Tennessee. Both winners took away 250,000 Streaks Cash, and just like Knicks fans, we’re sure they are very excited. Also, congrats to Lawrence from Illinois and Zachary from Nebraska, who won last week’s NFL contests.

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This game features a matchup between veteran and 3rd-year “schoolyard quarterbacks” in Aaron Rodgers and Kyler Murray. Murray has taken a step forward this season, with significant improvements in his completion percentage (67.2% to 73.5%, tops in the NFL), yards per pass (7.1 to 9.0), and passer rating (94.3 to 116.8), and has led the Cardinals to remain as the last undefeated team in the league. Cardinals’ head coach Kliff Kingsbury has successfully imported his “Air-raid” system from the NCAA to the NFL, which lets Murray spread the ball out to four receivers with over 300 receiving yards on the season: DeAndre Hopkins, Christian Kirk, A.J. Green, and Rondale Moore. The Cardinals balance their passing attack with the 5th best rushing offense at 136.6 yards per game from their two running backs Chase Edmonds and James Conner.

The Packers have won six games in a row, with their only loss this season coming in their first game in a flukey blowout against the Saints. However, this week, Rodgers will be without top receivers Davante Adams and Allen Lazard as they were placed on the COVID-19 list. The Packers hope that receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling can play this week after missing the last four with an ankle injury. Randall Cobb has established chemistry with Rodgers over the years and will also have a chance to put up some big numbers this game. Both the Cardinals and Packers have excellent passing defenses, with the Cardinals ranking 3rd in the league in passing yards against per game (201) and the Packers ranking 6th (210), while both of their rushing defenses are middle of the pack (Arizona is 18th, and Green Bay 23rd), so the Cardinals will probably look to their ground game to stay undefeated. Does Rodgers have enough magic in his bag of tricks to pull off the upset?

Spread: Cardinals favored by 6.5 points

Over/under: 49.5

Preview Question: Kyler Murray is one of the premier mobile quarterbacks in the game, but GB will need to put pressure on him to have a chance at winning. How many sacks will Green Bay have?

The Packers have 8 different players who have recorded a sack this season, so their pressure can come from anywhere along their defensive line. Murray likes to hold onto the ball, escape out of the pocket, and make downfield magic happen, so the Packers will try to keep him in the pocket. Murray has been sacked 16 times this season, and defenses who can generate pressure while playing man-to-man coverage have had some success slowing the Cardinals down.

Dallas Cowboys at Minnesota Vikings (Sun – 8:20 ET)

The Cowboys have come out strong in the first half of this season and now look like one of the top Super Bowl contenders, thanks to a balanced offensive attack that is first by a long shot in yards per game. With the 5th best passing attack and the 2nd best ground game, the Cowboys average 460.8 yards per game, with Tampa Bay in second place at 423.4. Running backs Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard provide a whopping 1-2 punch, as both are on pace for 1,000-yard seasons. Downfield, the Cowboys have precise route-runner Amari Cooper and ad-lib specialist CeeDee Lamb who both find ways to get open on most plays.

The Vikings have been excellent on the offensive side of the ball this season as well, with the 8th most rushing yards per game (127.8) and the 6th most passing yards per game (286.3), good for 5th in the league in total yards per game (414.2). Kirk Cousins is having another solid regular season with 13 touchdowns to only 2 interceptions, and he will get dual-threat running back Dalvin Cook back from an ankle injury this game, so they should be able to move the ball effectively against the Cowboys. On paper, the difference between these two teams is on the defensive side of the ball, with the Vikings having a stronger passing defense and the Cowboys having a stronger rushing defense. The Cowboys will hope they can get an early lead and eat up the game clock with ball control, while the Vikings will be hoping for a more fast-paced shootout. While the Cowboys have looked like the better team this season, the Vikings are playing at home and need this win to stay in the playoff hunt, so oddsmakers expect this to be a close one.

Spread: Cowboys favored by 1.5 points

Over/under: 55

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