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Cardinals at Rams

Cardinals facing the Rams in L.A. is the tightest matchup of wildcard weekend. Both teams are so similar in stat profiles there is little to chose between them. For example on our offensive killer stat, yards per pass attempt, Rams rank 3rd at 7.39 yards and Cards rank 6th at 6.98. On the defensive side, yards per pass attempt allowed Rams and Cards sit in a virtual tie 10th rank at 5.94 yards allowed. Can things get much closer?

Both teams show all-around strong stat profiles with no weaknesses to speak of. Both are legit contenders to make it to the Super Bowl, along with the 49ers -- 3 teams coming out of the highly-competitive NFC West, this year's strongest conference. It's great days for pro football on the west coast.

So who will win? Our computer picks the Rams by 2 but that's with a 3-point home advantage -- really too close to call. Purely on stats there is no difference between the twwo teams. The only thing I'll point out is recent performances: Rams wining, Cards losing. Below is a chart of Yards per Pass Attempt for Cards and you can see their fall off and the the absence of the yellow win flags on the most recent bars. It may be hard to get back into a winning mindset.

Yards per Pass Att

Arizona Cardinals

2021 through Week 17


      Yards per Pass Attempt - Arizona Cardinals

With no stat advantage to either team, I'll go with the trends and the venue and pick the Rams in what should be the best game of the wildcard matchups. Great viewing on a Monday night!

Bill Sanders for BudGoodeSports.com
dr.bill@wrsanders.com

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