The Cardinals lost 23-7 in San Francisco just three weeks ago, but, they have won four of their last five games.  The Cardinals will be starting Kevin Kolb at QB instead of John Skelton this time around against the Niners, so I expect a much different football game.  The 49ers dumped the hapless Rams in San Francisco last weekend, 26-0.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Cardinals have the ball:  Beanie Wells is a little gimpy right now and the 49ers are only giving up 71.8 yards rushing per game and 3.3 yards per carry so far this year, so look for the Cardinals to be very pass heavy this weekend.  The Niners will likely attempt to double cover Larry Fitzgerald, but that isn’t going to stop QB Kevin Kolb from throwing the ball to him.  WRs Andre Roberts and Early Doucet are also going to be used a lot in this game for the Cardinals.

When the 49ers have the ball:  The Niners are going to try to run the ball a lot in this game.  In the first game between these two teams, the Niners ran the ball 42 times.  The Cardinals are going to have to focus on stopping RBs Frank Gore and Kendall Hunter in an attempt to make the Niners one dimensional on offense.  Alex Smith is having a solid year, so the Cardinals are going to try to get after him and try to force him into making some big mistakes.  The Niners will likely continue throwing the ball down the field to WRs Kyle Williams, Michael Crabtree and Ted Ginn.  The Cardinals will also have to worry about TEs Vernon Davis and Delanie Walker.

PREDICTION:  49ERS 23, CARDINALS 20

23-year old WR Andre Roberts looked like he was sleepwalking early this year, but he has come on big time lately.  In his last five games, Roberts has caught 20 passes for 286 yards (14.3 avg).  The Cardinals are incidentally 4-1 in their last five games, so Roberts is helping them out quite a bit lately.  Roberts has now played in 12 games for the Cardinals so far this year and he has caught 33 passes for 419 yards (12.7 avg).  Roberts has now played in 27 games in his first two years in the NFL and he has caught 57 passes for 726 yards (12.7 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  The Cardinals hope Roberts keeps playing well as they have needed a #3 WR for quite some time now and it looks like he’s trying to embrace the job.

27-year old QB Kevin Kolb was all banged up, which cost him to miss P.T.  After watching John Skelton play at QB for the last few weeks, the coaching staff had to be jumping for joy to have Kolb back.  He completed 16 of 25 passes (64%) for 247 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs (109.9 QB Rating) in the Cardinals’ 19-13 win in O.T. against the Cowboys yesterday.  Kolb has now played in 8 games for the Cardinals so far this year and he has completed 145 of 252 passes (57.5%) for 1,953 yards with 9 TD passes and 8 INTs (81.0 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 17 times for 65 yards (3.8 ypc) so far this year.  The Cardinals need the offensive line to keep Kolb in one piece the rest of this year.

The Cardinals monitor 24-year old RB LaRod Stephens-Howling’s playing time due to the fact that he only stands 5’7″, 185 pounds.  He has played in 10 games for the Cardinals so far this year and he has carried the ball 17 times for 65 yards (3.8 ypc).  Stephens-Howling has also caught 8 passes for 192 yards (24.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs and he has returned 32 kickoffs for 759 yards (23.7 avg).  He has touched the ball 57 times for the Cardinals so far this year and he has 1,016 all-purpose yards.  Stephens-Howling is averaging 101.6 all purpose yards per game and 17.8 yards per touch this year.  The Cardinals need to get LaRod Stephens-Howling the ball a little more as he just makes big plays.

The Cardinals played a solid game yesterday and got another nice home win.  Kevin Kolb got the start at QB and he looked solid in completing 16 of 25 passes for 247 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 3 times for 20 yards (6.7 ypc) in this game.  Beanie Wells led the way on the ground for the Cardinals in this game with 67 yards rushing on 20 carries (3.4 ypc) with 1 TD run.  LaRod Stephens-Howling pitched in with 2 carries for 16 yards (8.0 ypc) and 1 catch for a 52-yard game winning TD in O.T.  WRs Andre Roberts (6 rec, 111 yards) and Larry Fitzgerald (4 rec, 55 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Cardinals.  The Cardinals finished up with 103 yards rushing on 25 carries (4.1 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 25 passes (64%) for 224 yards as they had possession of the ball for 29:35.

The defense was pretty solid, especially against the run, yesterday for the Cardinals.  LB Daryl Washington led the way for the Cardinals in this game with 9 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss.  Safety Patrick Peterson (5 tackles, 3 passes defensed), safety Adrian Wilson (5 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss), CB A.J. Jefferson (5 tackles, 1 pass defensed), CB Richard Marshall (5 tackles) and LB Paris Lenon (5 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit) also played solid football for the Cards yesterday.  The Cowboys finished up with 75 yards rushing on 20 carries (3.8 ypc) and they also completed 28 of 42 passes (66.7%) for 261 yards.  The Cardinals are now 5-7 on the season.

The Arizona Cardinals are suddenly hot all of a sudden, winning three of their last four games (2 against the Rams).  The Cowboys have won four games in a row now (none against good teams).  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Cardinals have the ball:  The Cardinals are going to come out running the ball with Beanie Wells.  He will try to have another huge game against a Cowboys’ D that is allowing 100.3 yards rushing per game and 4.3 yards per carry.  Kevin Kolb will be getting the start at QB and he could have a good game tomorrow as long as the O-Line keeps OLB DeMarcus Ware out of the Cardinals’ backfield.  WR Larry Fitzgerald will likely be constantly double teamed in the game tomorrow, but he’s so good that he won’t be stopped.  The Cardinals also need Early Doucet to step up in this game, as the Cardinals are going to need a lot of points to win this game.

When the Cowboys have the ball:  The first order of business for the Cardinals will likely be trying to stop rookie RB DeMarco Murray.  That won’t be easy as he has been outstanding for the Cowboys since moving into the starting lineup.  The Cardinals are going to have to get after Tony Romo, because they are in trouble if he has time to survey the field.  TE Jason Witten and WRs Dez Bryant and Laurent Robinson are going to be hard for the Cardinals’ secondary to deal with.

PREDICTION:  COWBOYS 27, CARDINALS 24