The Arizona Cardinals, looking for their fourth straight win travel to New Orleans to play the Saints, who get Drew Brees back this week.
Drew Brees was looking to have a very promising season before he was injured in Week 2. After multiple opinions on his injury, Brees opted to get thumb surgery in hopes for a faster recovery. This week, he was listed as limited, and he is hoping to make his return. While Brees could easily retire and make the hall of fame, he isn’t ready for that yet. The 40-year-old quarterback wants to get more playing time in, and it will hopefully start this week.
While Brees missed the last five weeks, his spot was filled by Teddy Bridgewater, who has done a very good job, leading the team to five straight wins. This season, Bridgewater has thrown for 1,370 yards, nine touchdowns, and only two interceptions. The only two seasons he has thrown for more yards were 2014 and 2015 when he was with the Vikings. Those seasons were Bridgewater’s rookie and sophomore seasons, and he was playing great before a gruesome knee injury sidelined him for almost two seasons.
If Brees can start this week, that would mean that he would be facing rookie Kyler Murray. While Brees has been in the league for a while, Murray is just starting, and he already seems to have a promising career ahead of him. This year, Murray has thrown for 1,768 yards with seven touchdowns and four interceptions.
Murray has proved that he is also a good runner. His 266 yards on the ground are helping the Cardinals to be the only team with three players who have 250 or more rushing yards. The other two are running backs David Johnson (300 yards) and Chase Edmonds (287 yards).
What did last week tell us?
Last week, Chase Edmonds came out onto the field and surprised us all, rushing for 126 yards and three touchdowns, both career highs. With David Johnson coming back this week, it will be interesting to see what the Cardinals do. The most reasonable option would be to put Edmonds in as a running back and Johnson as a fullback. With both players doing very well, the Cardinals could capitalize off of this offensive power.
For the Saints, last week didn’t foreshadow a lot for this week. Teddy Bridgewater was 23 of 38 and he threw for more than 200 yards, passinng for two touchdowns and no interceptions.
Injury Report
The Cardinals had six players sit out of practice. Of those six, three were just taking the day off, while Zach Allen, Jordan Hicks, and David Johnson were the injury-related players. While Johnson still might play on Sunday, Allen and Hicks most likely won’t. Another big name who wasn’t at practice was Larry Fitzgerald. The veteran took the day off and will be starting on Sunday.
For the Saints, five players sat out. Those players were Tre’Quan Smith, Jared Cook, Alvin Kamara, J.T. Gray, and Patrick Robinson. While none of these guys are looking like they will be playing on Sunday, the Saints had three limited participants who most likely will play in Drew Brees, Eli Apple, and Trey Hendrickson. Brees was limited on both Wednesday and Thursday, while Apple and Hendrickson were limited on Wednesday and had a full practice on Thursday.
Game Info
Date: Sunday, Oct. 27, 2019
Time: 1:00 p.m. EST
Location: New Orleans, La.
Stadium: Mercedes-Benz Superdome
TV Info: CBS
Betting Odds
Spread: Saints -10.5
Moneyline: Cardinals +400, Saints -550
Over/Under: 48
Prediction
Despite Drew Brees wanting to start this week, I think he will take another week to recover and will return in Week 9. Teddy Bridgewater will lead the Saints to their sixth straight victory. The Saints have proven to be a better team than the Cardinals, and they will be able to take the victory.
Final Score Prediction: Saints 34, Cardinals 20.
