49ers/Cardinals Ov. 44 Cardinals/49ers OVER 44 (3 units)
The 49ers, while perceived to be a run-first team, in the past few weeks, their offense has become increasingly more dynamic. They have departed from run-run-pass and instead, have integrated a spread scheme that has proven very, very successful, despite Coach Singeltary's penchant for being a run-first head coach.
The Cardinal's defense, no doubt, was sky-high last week at home against the juggernaut Vikings. Now, they face a 49er offense that has posted pedestrian point totals of 10, 24, 20, and 17 in their last four games. In fact, the 49er rush game has been particularly impotent, as they haven't gotten more than 70 yards in their last three games, on 10, 20, and 12 rushes. Clearly, their shift to spreading it out and throwing the ball is evident.
In this division match-up, they'll face a defense that, despite conventional wisdom, has gotten lit up the past month and a half. They've surrendered at least 250+ yards passing in 4 of their last 5 games. I expect the 49ers to try and exploit this deficiency early and often.
On the flip side, the Cardinal offense was humming last week against a formidable Viking defense. Surprisingly, in their last five games, the Cardinal rushing attempts have been: 31, 30, 30, 20, 25. The 49er run defense ranks 5th, so the Cardinals should find it tough sledding in this one. The 49ers held the Cardinals to 40 yards rushing in their first meeting this season, while holding them to 16 total points.
There will be a lot of throwing in this one. A lot. Their first meeting was totaled at 45, and now we're getting a lower total. Today's total doesn't reflect the shift in offensive philosophy and the relative strengths of each defense. IMO, there will be a lot of pass attempts in this one, which should keep that clock slow moving, with big play possibilities.
