The Arizona Cardinals have lost two tough games in a row, while the Giants have won two games in a row.  The Cardinals hope that the Giants have a little bit of a letdown after a huge win over the Eagles last weekend in Philly.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Cardinals have the ball:  The Cardinals are going to come out passing this Sunday in an attempt to get a quick lead in this game.  The Giants are giving up 255.0 yards passing per game, so there are plays to be made down the field as long as Kolb has time to throw the ball.  Even if the Giants double team Larry Fitzgerald, he’s still going to be Kolb’s top target in this game….he’ll just have to be careful with the ball.  He will have to spread the ball around to WR Early Doucet, WR Andre Roberts and TE Todd Heap in this game to keep the Giants’ secondary honest.  The O-Line will need to give Kolb time to throw the ball as the Giants already have 8 sacks so far this year.  RB Beanie Wells appears ready to return to action this weekend, which will give the running game a huge boost.

When the Giants have the ball:  The front seven of the Cardinals’ D is going to have a huge challenge in front of them in dealing with Giants’ backs Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs as they are a very physical pair.  The Cardinals are also going to have to get after Eli Manning a lot in this game in an effort to force him into making some mistakes.  The Cardinals are giving up 275.0 yards passing per game so far this year, so look for Manning to be pounding the ball down the field to WRs Hakeem Nicks, Mario Manningham and Victor Cruz.

PREDICTION:  GIANTS 23, CARDINALS 21

The Arizona Cardinals really missed 23-year old RB Beanie Wells who sat out the game to nurse a groin injury.  He says that he will be ready to return against the Giants this weekend and the Cardinals need him badly.  Wells played in the first two games for the Cardinals this year and he carried the ball 32 times for 183 yards (5.6 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He also has caught 4 passes for 12 yards (3.0 avg) so far this year.  24-year old Alfonso Smith and 32-year old Chester Taylor are a huge dropoff from Beanie Wells.  Smith has played in 2 games for the Cardinals so far this year and he has carried the ball 17 times for 54 yards (3.2 ypc) and he has caught 3 passes for 21 yards (7.0 avg).  Chester Taylor has played in 1 game so far this year for the Cardinals and he has carried the ball 9 times for 20 yards (2.2 ypc) and he has also caught 1 pass for 12 yards.  The Cardinals really need Wells back this weekend against the Giants, to help give the offense some balance.

31-year old TE Todd Heap and 28-year old TE Jeff King have been solid for the Cardinals so far this year.  Kevin Kolb has completed 13 of 18 passes (72.2%) for 206 yards and 2 TD passes to the TEs so far this year.  Todd Heap has played in all 3 games for the Cardinals this year and he has caught 9 passes for 109 yards (12.1 avg).  He will be the main TE used in the passing game as the season goes on.  Jeff King has played in all three games for the Cardinals so far this year and he has caught 4 passes for 97 yards (24.3 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Kolb really liked throwing to Brent Celek (TE) when he was with Philly, so look for Heap to have big numbers by the end of the season if he can just stay healthy.

The defense stepped up for the Cardinals yesterday but the offense and special teams let them down.  Kicker Jay Feely missed a couple long field goals (49 and 51 yards) and that hurt the team.  Kevin Kolb was not at his best yesterday as he completed 25 of 39 passes for 252 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 INTs.  He also carried the ball 3 times for 16 yards (5.3 ypc) yesterday.  Alfonso Smith led the way on the ground for the Cardinals yesterday as he carried the ball 17 times for 54 yards (3.2 ypc).  He also caught 3 passes for 21 yards (7.0 avg) in this game.  Chester Taylor carried the ball 8 times for 20 yards (2.5 ypc) and he also caught 1 pass for 12 yards.  WR Larry Fitzgerald (5 rec, 64 yards, TD), TE Todd Heap (6 rec, 61 yards) and WR Early Doucet (5 rec, 50 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Cardinals.  The Cardinals rushed for 90 yards on 28 carries (3.2 ypc) and they also completed 25 of 39 passes (64.1%) for 234 yards as they had possession of the ball for 31:49.

The defense was incredible as DE Calais Campbell led the way with 10 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks and 4 QB hits.  CB A.J. Jefferson (7 tackles and 2 passes defensed) and CB Patrick Peterson (interception) also made some big plays for the Cardinals yesterday.  The Seahawks finished up with 122 yards rushing on 30 carries (4.1 ypc) and they also completed 18 of 31 passes (58.1%) for 139 yards.  The Cardinals are now 1-2 on the year.

The Arizona Cardinals were swept by a combined score of 58-28 last year!  A lot has changed since then as the Cardinals have a good QB this time around in Kevin Kolb.  The Seahawks have been outscored 57-17 so far this year as they have looked awful.  This is their home opener though, so I look for them to play better this Sunday.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Cardinals have the ball:  The Cardinals are going to come out throwing the ball against a Seahawks’ D that is allowing 210.5 yards passing per game and QBs have a 106.4 QB Rating against them.  Kevin Kolb should have a lot of time to throw the ball this Sunday as the Seahawks only have 2 sacks so far this year.  Larry Fitzgerald should be in for a big game this Sunday for the Cardinals.  Early Doucet, Andre Roberts, Todd Heap and Jeff King will also likely get a few looks each in the passing game.  Beanie Wells is a little dinged up but he should get his 15-20 carries against a Seahawks’ D that is allowing 104.5 yards rushing per game but only 3.1 yards per carry.

When the Seahawks have the ball:  The Seahawks will likely take the shackles off of their offense this weekend.  Look for RB Marshawn Lynch (44 yards, 2.3 ypc) against a Cardinals’ D that is allowing 123.0 yards rushing per game and 4.0 yards per carry so far this year.  The Seahawks will likely keep the passing game of the short variety as Tarvares Jackson has already been sacked 10 times so far this year.  His top target in the passing game could be WR Mike Williams, as he caught 22 passes for 232 yards (10.5 avg) with 1 TD grab against the Cardinals last year.  Also look for TE Zach Miller to be very involved in the passing game for the Seahawks this weekend.

PREDICTION:  CARDINALS 27, SEAHAWKS 24

The Cardinals have placed 24-year old cornerback Crezdon Butler on the Injured Reserve List ending his season due to an ankle injury.  Butler played in 1 game for the Cardinals this year and he didn’t have any tackles.  Butler has now played in 5 games in his first two years in the NFL and he has 1 whole tackle.  The Cardinals should be o.k. without Butler.

27-year old QB Kevin Kolb is off to a great start in his career with the Cardinals.  He has played in 2 games for the Cardinals so far this year and he has completed 35 of 57 passes (61.4%) for 560 yards with 4 TD passes and 1 INT (110.3 QB Rating).  Kolb has also carried the ball 4 times for -1 yard (-0.3 ypc) so far this year.  The Cardinals’ offense has looked pretty sharp so far this year and Kolb has had a lot to do with it, as they didn’t bring in much offensive help in the off-season.

The Cardinals were winning this game until there was 1:45 left to play as the defense let them down big time.  Kevin Kolb was solid again for the Cardinals as he completed 17 of 30 passes for 251 yards with 2 TD passes and 1 INT.  Beanie Wells had also had a good game with 93 yards rushing on 14 carries (6.6 ypc) with 1 TD run yesterday.  WR Larry Fitzgerald led the way in the passing game for the Cardinals with 7 grabs for 133 yards (19.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  TE Jeff King (2 rec, 36 yards, TD) and WR Andre Roberts (3 rec, 30 yards) also pitched in for the Cardinals in this game.  The Cardinals finished up with 93 yards on 15 carries (6.2 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 30 passes (56.7%) for 231 yards despite only having the ball for 21:30.

The defense had a very hard time getting off the field yesterday as the Redskins were ball hogs.  Safety Kerry Rhodes (8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack, 1 pass defensed and 1 QB hit) and rookie CB Patrick Peterson (8 tackles) led the way for the Cardinals’ D in this game.  LBs Stewart Bradley (7 tackles) and Reggie Walker (7 tackles) each pitched in with 7 tackles apiece.  CB Richard Marshall and safety Adrian Wilson each had 1 interception apiece in this game.  The Redskins finished up with 172 yards rushing on 35 carries (4.9 ypc) and they also completed 25 of 43 passes (58.1%) for 283 yards in this game.  The Cardinals are now 1-1 on the year.

The Arizona Cardinals are going to have their hands full in dealing with the Redskins in Washington this Sunday.  The Cardinals are going to have to play a lot better if they want to beat the Redskins who are a much better football team than the Panthers are.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Cardinals have the ball:  The Cardinals are likely going to try to remain pretty balanced like they were last weekend when they ran the ball 25 times and threw it 27 times.  Beanie Wells is going to have to earn every yard he gets tomorrow against LBs London Fletcher, Rocky McIntosh and the rest of the D that held the Giants to only 75 yards rushing on 20 carries (3.8 ypc).  The Cardinals are going to want to throw the ball to Larry Fitzgerald a lot more this weekend, even if the Redskins double him.  Still, look for Kevin Kolb to throw a lot to the other guys too.  WRs Early Doucet and Andre Roberts as well as TEs Todd Heap and Jeff King are going to get a lot of looks in the passing game.  The key will be making sure that Kolb has enough time to throw the ball as the Redskins had 4 sacks last weekend.

When the Redskins have the ball:  Ex-Cardinals’ RB Tim Hightower is going to want to stick it to his old team, so the Cardinals better be ready for him.  The Cardinals did well against the Panthers’ RBs last weekend as they only rushed for 74 yards on 27 carries (2.7 ypc).  The Cardinals are likely going to blitz a lot in this game as Rex Grossman gets careless when he gets rushed and hit a few times in a game.  But, he looked sharp against the Giants last weekend.  Safeties Kerry Rhodes and Adrian Wilson are going to have to deal with TEs Fred Davis and Chris Cooley, while still helping the corners over the top.  That’s because WRs Santana Moss, Anthony Armstrong and Jabar Gaffney give the Redskins the ability to make plays in the passing game down the field.

PREDICTION:  REDSKINS 30, CARDINALS 27

25-year old WR Early Doucet really had a breakout game for the Cardinals yesterday as he caught 3 passes for 105 yards (35.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  The reason this was a little bit of a shock was because he has been a possession receiver to this point in his career.  In Doucet’s first three years with the Cardinals, he played in 26 games in which he caught 57 passes for 595 yards (10.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  The Cardinals needed a WR to step up to take some pressure off of Larry Fitzgerald.  Many thought that would be Andre Roberts, but based on yesterday….Early Doucet might be getting his chance to shine for the Cardinals in 2011.