They’ll meet up this weekend in Arizona and one of these teams will leave with a winning record.
According to the NFL odds I find the Cardinals -4.5 over the Raiders with a total set at 39.5 points.
Both teams are getting little production from the quarterback position. Kurt Warner retired, and the Cardinals traded Matt Leinart away, leaving Derek Anderson as the starter. Meanwhile, Jason Campbell struggled in his first six quarters as the Raiders starter and was replaced at halftime last week by Bruce Gradkowski.
After leading the Raiders to a 16-14 victory over St. Louis last week, Gradkowski has earned the starting job this week against the Cardinals. Jason Campbell went 22-of-37 for 180 yards with a touchdown and an interception in their 38-13 loss to Tennessee in their opener, and he was ineffective in the first half last week as the Raiders trailed the Rams 7-3 on home turf.
Gradkowski led Oakland to 13 second-half points while throwing for 162 yards and a touchdown in two quarters. He was 2-2 as a starter last year and is clearly Oakland’s best option at this point.
“The reasons are pretty simple,” Raiders' head coach Tom Cable said. “First and foremost is the energy and the level of intensity that was brought into the huddle when he came into the game. The way the guys responded around him. And obviously scoring points… That’s what we’re about. If we can get this thing to where we can score 24 points a game, I think we’ll be very tough to beat.”
Campbell was immobile in the pocket, getting sacked six times on just 52 passing attempts.
Gradkowski can escape the rush, and he’ll have the luxury of relying on one of the most dominant rushing attacks in the league to this p...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
