Arizona Cardinals vs. Carolina Panthers Odds, Spread, Preview: NFL Week 4 Predictions

Arizona Cardinals vs. Carolina Panthers Week 4 matchup preview and current betting lines

The Cardinals travel to Charlotte to take on the Panthers in a showdown of 1-2 teams. Both franchises will attempt to claw their way back to a .500 record and prevent themselves from falling to 1-3. The game will feature former Oklahoma college teammates and No. 1 overall picks—Baker Mayfield (2017) and Kyler Murray (2018). 

Arizona is coming off a narrow 20-12 loss against division rival Los Angeles. The Cardinals never led during the contest and cut the lead to eight after a Matt Prater field goal with 1:07 left in the fourth quarter. Kliff Kingsbury’s squad was unable to recover the onside kick. 

The Cardinals have been disappointing and sit in third place in the NFC West standings. The hope around the organization is to obviously win games but have a competitive record come week 7 when DeAndre Hopkins returns from suspension. The Pro Bowl wide receiver was suspended six games after testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance. 

Carolina enters the game on a high note after defeating New Orleans 22-14. Head coach Matt Rhule and quarterback Baker Mayfield have the pressure mounting on them. Rhule is 11-25 as the Panthers’ coach and will likely be fired should he not lead them to the playoffs. Mayfield is on his second team after failing to live up to expectations as Cleveland’s top draft pick in 2018. If Mayfield doesn’t perform well he’ll have to find a new team in the offseason.

Oddsmakers on PointsBet sportsbook have the odds set in favor of the Panthers winning as one-point favorites on the spread and -115 on the moneyline, compared to Arizona at +100. Currently, 82% of spread bets made by the public have been on Arizona.

Players to watch in the Arizona vs. Carolina contest

Cardinals

Marquise Brown: During the 2022 NFL Draft, Arizona traded the 23rd and 130th overall picks for Brown and the 100th pick. The former Sooner was college teammates with Kyler Murray and has improved his stats each game this season. Against Los Angeles, Brown had 14 receptions for 140 yards on 17 targets. The speedy wideout is firmly the WR1 while Hopkins sits out. 

Panthers

DJ Moore: After recording three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons, Moore is off to an extremely slow start. Through three games, Moore has seven catches for 88 yards and a touchdown. His seven receptions are 115th in the NFL. In his first three games last season, the former first-rounder had 22 catches for 285 yards and a touchdown. Rhule will need to find a way to incorporate his talented weapon into the offensive game plan.

Our NFL bet of the week for the Cardinals vs. Panthers

ESTNN is providing gamblers with two free picks for this game.

Arizona vs Carolina Moneyline: Arizona @ +100 

Arizona is still finding its footing after its 1-2 start. The team is 15th in the NFL in total offense with an average of 353.3 yards per game. It would be a massive setback for the team should it not make the playoffs after going 11-6 last season and starting the year 7-0. The team was eighth in the NFL for total offense in 2021.

Fortunately for the Cards, they’re going up against a very poorly coached and quarterbacked team. Mayfield has been awful in 2022, completing only 51.9 percent of his passes. The 27-year-old has thrown for 550 yards (29th in the NFL) and has the league’s worst quarterback rating (18.9). Mayfield has been considered a WR1 killer after his poor connection with Odell Beckham in Cleveland and it’s looking similar with Moore in Carolina.

Kyler Murray has played above average throwing for 784 yards, three touchdowns and an interception this season. His most clutch plays of the campaign were a rushing touchdown as time expired against the Raiders and a successful two-point conversion to tie the game. The Cardinals went on to win 29-23 in overtime. 

Arizona has faced three playoff teams from 2021 and has kept things close aside from the week 1, 44-21 blowout, versus Kansas City. Against the 30th-ranked Carolina defense, Murray and company should find success. 

Carolina likely should have lost against the Saints in the previous week as it was outmatched in yards (426-293) and first downs (19-12). If it weren’t for three turnovers by the Saints, the Panthers probably would’ve fallen to 0-3. Versatile running back Christian McCaffrey is questionable for this contest and could be limited if active which would be a massive loss for Carolina.

Carolina is 1-7 straight up in its last seven games at home and 1-9 SU in its previous 10 contests. Our selection for this game is to take the Cardinals moneyline at +100 on PointsBet. 

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Cardinals vs. Panthers odds: Marquise Brown over 5.5 receptions @ +100

“Hollywood” Brown has developed a connection with his good friend Murray. In his last two games, Brown has recorded six and 14 receptions on 28 targets. In his last 16 games, the 25-year-old has hit his receptions over prop 11 times. 

The +100 odds are a great value play. Murray will likely look for Brown often as he’s done the previous two weeks and should find success against the Panthers’ poor secondary. Our pick is to take the over 5.5 receptions on DraftKings Sportsbook.

If you’re interested in learning about more prop bets for week 4, read our NFL player props page.

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