The Cardinals haven’t exactly had the Seahawks’ number lately. Arizona has dropped nine straight against Seattle, a run that goes back to the 2021 season. But heading into Week 2, one metric is bucking that trend.
ESPN’s matchup predictor gives the Cardinals a narrow edge at home in Sunday’s game at State Farm Stadium, putting Arizona at 53.7% to win and Seattle at 45.9%.
That number comes with a major caveat for Seattle: starting quarterback Sam Darnold has officially been ruled out. In his place, Drew Lock is set to start against an Arizona defense that held Justin Herbert and the Chargers to 14 points in Week 1.
Both teams enter the game at 1-0, and Seahawks head coach Mike LaFleur made clear he still likes what he saw from Lock last week.
"I want to say he's started 28 games I think in his career. He's played 41 career [games].
I think he was 16 to 22 for 187 in a touchdown [last week]. I thought he was efficient," LaFleur said of Lock.
Darnold left last week’s season opener early with a glute injury, though the Seahawks do not expect him to land on injured reserve.
LaFleur also spoke highly of his starter when discussing the quarterback situation.
"Sam's a great quarterback. I'd say I know Sam a little bit better than Drew because I did have I guess you could say a month or so with him even though he wasn't in the building in New York," LaFleur continued, referencing his short tenure as an offensive coordinator with the Jets.
"But I've always really respected him dating back to USC, understanding that he was a young quarterback going through - every situation is different by the quarterback and by the club. He got himself in a very stable situation.
I think starting in San Francisco, Minnesota, and then obviously in Seattle. It's not shocking that they got the result they did last year.
"In my opinion, they are the best coach team in football. I think they have the best defense in football, and now, in my opinion, they have a really, really good quarterback with it, and yeah, he's down this week.
But again, like I just said with Drew, the moment's not too big for him. I think he's a good quarterback who's played a lot of good football."
It’s an early NFC West matchup, and the kind where the numbers and the recent history point in different directions. For now, ESPN’s predictor says Arizona has the slight upper hand.
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