St. Louis Rams vs. Arizona Cardinals: Spread Info, Line and Predictions

Are you ready for some (titanically terrible, eye-gougingly bad) football, NFL fans? Then be sure to tune in when the St. Louis Rams, sans Sam Bradford, try to build on their first win of the season, against the New Orleans Saints, against the equally-pitiful (with or without Kevin Kolb) Arizona Cardinals in a battle of backup quarterbacks.

You'll laugh, you'll cry... and then you'll wonder why you're not watching the other game that's on.

That is, unless you're a big proponent of semi-moderated train wrecks.

Where: University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

When: Sunday, November 6th at 4:15 p.m. EST

Watch: FOX (check your local listings)

Spread: Cardinals -3 (according to sportsbook.com)

Take the Rams to beat the spread. They're riding high after earning their first win of the season and should be able to upend the Kolb-less Cards, even on the road.

Over/Under: 41 (according to sportsbook.com)

Go with the under on this one. These two teams combine for a measly 32.8 points per game and will be hard-pressed to top that number without their starting quarterbacks on the field.

Key Injuries:

As mentioned previously (several times), both teams will be sitting their top signal callers due to injury. Sam Bradford will miss his third-straight game for St. Louis with a high ankle sprain, while Kevin Kolb is expected to sit for Arizona while nursing an injured right toe.

Fantasy Big Plays:

Steven Jackson, RB, St. Louis Rams: Jackson showed in Week 8 that he's back at full force by piling up 159 yards and two touchdowns against the Saints. With AJ Feeley still handling Bradford's duties under center, Jackson figures to get plenty of carries against a Cards defense that's solidly middle-of-the-pack against the run.

Beanie Wells, RB, Arizona Cardinals: Like Jackson, Beanie Wells has been slowed by injuries this season but will see the ball early and often if/when John Skelton takes over for Kolb at quarterback. If Wells' sore knee is good to go, look for him to rack up yardage aplenty against the NFL's worst run defense.

Brandon Lloyd, WR, St. Louis Rams: As bad as the quarterbacking is sure to be in this game, they're going to have to throw the ball to someone eventually. For the Rams, that someone figures to be Brandon Lloyd, who's garnered 25 targets in just two games since Denver traded him to St. Louis. He'll get those looks in bunches against an Arizona secondary that's among the least effective in the league this season.

Keys to St. Louis Rams Win:

The plan for the Rams is (or ought to be) simple: feed the ball to Steven Jackson and let AJ Feeley manage the game with short passes on offense, and pressure whoever is under center for Arizona until the cows come home. If that was enough for St. Louis to beat New Orleans last week, then it should be more than sufficient to get Steve Spagnuolo's squad its second win of the season against the lowly Cards.

Keys to Arizona Cardinals Win:

On the flip side, the Cards must first keep their fingers crossed that Kevin Kolb is healthy enough to play. If/when that doesn't work out, the offensive line needs to provide some semblance of a pocket for John Skelton to keep him somewhat upright against a feisty Rams pass rush.

A healthy dose of a less-than-healthy Beanie Wells should help the Redbirds to control clock. Some help from dynamic rookie returner Patrick Peterson on special teams would go a long way toward helping Arizona win the battle for field position.

Prediction: Rams 15, Cardinals 12