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Hall of Fame Game: Arizona Cardinals vs. New Orleans Saints (-3, 37)
The 2012 NFL preseason kicks off in Canton, Ohio with the Hall of Fame Game. The New Orleans Saints, still stinging from the suspensions of “Bounty Gate” are putting the scandal behind them, starting with Sunday’s exhibition matchup versus Arizona.
Odds
Oddsmakers opened New Orleans at -2.5 and have since moved to a field goal with action on the Saints. The total originally opened as low as 34.5 points but has since been bet up to as high as 37.
Hall of Fame Game trends
Since 1995, Hall of Fame Game favorites are 22-17 SU with a 16-20-3 mark against the spread. In that same span, the Hall of Fame Game has posted a 23-16 over/under record. There was no HoF Game last season due to the NFL lockout.
Capping the QBs
Saints interim coach Joe Vitt has been tight lipped about how much his starters – namely his quarterbacks – will play in Sunday’s game. Behind Pro Bowl quarterback Drew Brees, who is expected to play sparingly, New Orleans is trying to iron out its No. 2 position between Chase Daniel and Luke McCown. Fourth stringer Sean Canfield is also expected to make an appearance Sunday.
Vitt said he wants to follow a similar QB rotation from the Saints’ 2007 Hall of Fame Game appearance versus the Pittsburgh Steelers, in which New Orleans lost 20-7 as a 3-point underdog. In that game, Brees attempted only six passes – completing one – while his three backups each attempted eight passes.
Daniel had some extra time with the Saints’ first-team offense this offseason while Brees did contract battle with the team’s brass. The Missouri product attempted only five passes last season, completing four of them for a total of 29 yards.
"I thought it was good for him to be in a position where he is the guy, he is running with the ones and having to exert himself and be the leader,'' Brees told the media of Daniel. ''I tell him that if you are not thinking about taking my job then you are thinking the wrong thing.''
Unlike New Orleans, Arizona doesn’t have a surefire starting quarterback. The Cardinals enter the 2012 campaign with one of the most heated QB battles of the preseason, weighing Kevin Kolb against John Skelton, who stepped in as the No. 1 in Week 9 after Kolb was injured last year.
Skelton was impressive, passing for 1,913, 11 touchdowns and 14 interceptions while helping lead the team to a 7-2 SU mark (6-3 ATS) in the final nine games of the season. Despite that effort, and a report that the Cardinals offense prefers Skelton, Kolb still sits atop the depth chart and will get the start for the Hall of Fame Game Sunday.
“Some of the guys mentioned it in the locker room," Skelton said of the supposed favoritism. "I don't know anything about that. I don't know where he got that from. From what it seems, all things are equal both in the locker room and on the field."
Kolb sat out practice this past week with a thigh contusion but head coach Ken Whisenhunt told reporters that he will be ready to start and that the team will follow a similar QB rotation as past preseasons. Last summer, Kolb threw just seven passes – connecting on four for 68 yards – in Arizona’s preseason opener. Skelton went 6 for 10 for 94 yards and a touchdown in the 24-18 win over the Oakland Raiders as a 3.5-point road underdog.
Replacement refs
With a labor dispute between the NFL and its officials stretching into the preseason, the league will use replacement referees for Sunday’s Hall of Fame Game.
Bettors are debating the impact of these second-string officials, unsure if it will mean more or less penalties. According to hulking NFL veteran official Ed Hochuli, replacement refs during the 2001 season threw roughly five flags per game – much fewer than the 12-14 tossed by regular officials.
Last season, the Saints were ninth in the league in fewest penalty yards per game with 48.3. The Cardinals were the sixth-most penalized team in terms of yardage in 2011, averaging 62.3 penalty yards per game. Could replacement officials miss some of those tough calls in the trenches, giving Arizona an advantage? We'll find out Sunday night.
New Orleans notes
-- The Saints will be without both starting cornerbacks for Sunday’s game. Jabari Greer underwent sports hernia surgery Thursday and Patrick Robinson is nursing an injured shoulder. Rookie receiver Nick Toon will also miss the game after hurting his foot in practice this week.
-- A giant billboard of suspended head coach Sean Peyton was put up in the Saints’ indoor practice facility with the words “Do Your Job” on it, the idea of owner Tom Benson. The slogan was what Peyton told his team and staff after being dealt a season-long ban due to the Saints’ bounty scandal. Peyton was cleared by the NFL to attend the Hall of Fame ceremony in Canton this weekend.
Arizona notes
-- The Cardinals will be short in the back field with running back Beanie Wells on the PUP list and young rusher Ryan William ruled out while recovering from a torn patella tendon injury last season. That leaves Arizona with Alphonso Smith, LaRod Stephens-Howling, William Powell and Thomas Clayton. Smith rushed for a total of 102 yards and one touchdown while Stephens-Howling posted 167 total yards on the ground in 2011.
-- Whisenhunt has posted two 0-4 SU preseason campaigns during his first five seasons calling the shots for the Cardinals and owns a 7-13 career win/loss mark in the tune-ups. That has parlayed itself into an 8-11-1 ATS count.
The 2012 NFL preseason kicks off in Canton, Ohio with the Hall of Fame Game. The New Orleans Saints, still stinging from the suspensions of “Bounty Gate” are putting the scandal behind them, starting with Sunday’s exhibition matchup versus Arizona.
Odds
Oddsmakers opened New Orleans at -2.5 and have since moved to a field goal with action on the Saints. The total originally opened as low as 34.5 points but has since been bet up to as high as 37.
Hall of Fame Game trends
Since 1995, Hall of Fame Game favorites are 22-17 SU with a 16-20-3 mark against the spread. In that same span, the Hall of Fame Game has posted a 23-16 over/under record. There was no HoF Game last season due to the NFL lockout.
Capping the QBs
Saints interim coach Joe Vitt has been tight lipped about how much his starters – namely his quarterbacks – will play in Sunday’s game. Behind Pro Bowl quarterback Drew Brees, who is expected to play sparingly, New Orleans is trying to iron out its No. 2 position between Chase Daniel and Luke McCown. Fourth stringer Sean Canfield is also expected to make an appearance Sunday.
Vitt said he wants to follow a similar QB rotation from the Saints’ 2007 Hall of Fame Game appearance versus the Pittsburgh Steelers, in which New Orleans lost 20-7 as a 3-point underdog. In that game, Brees attempted only six passes – completing one – while his three backups each attempted eight passes.
Daniel had some extra time with the Saints’ first-team offense this offseason while Brees did contract battle with the team’s brass. The Missouri product attempted only five passes last season, completing four of them for a total of 29 yards.
"I thought it was good for him to be in a position where he is the guy, he is running with the ones and having to exert himself and be the leader,'' Brees told the media of Daniel. ''I tell him that if you are not thinking about taking my job then you are thinking the wrong thing.''
Unlike New Orleans, Arizona doesn’t have a surefire starting quarterback. The Cardinals enter the 2012 campaign with one of the most heated QB battles of the preseason, weighing Kevin Kolb against John Skelton, who stepped in as the No. 1 in Week 9 after Kolb was injured last year.
Skelton was impressive, passing for 1,913, 11 touchdowns and 14 interceptions while helping lead the team to a 7-2 SU mark (6-3 ATS) in the final nine games of the season. Despite that effort, and a report that the Cardinals offense prefers Skelton, Kolb still sits atop the depth chart and will get the start for the Hall of Fame Game Sunday.
“Some of the guys mentioned it in the locker room," Skelton said of the supposed favoritism. "I don't know anything about that. I don't know where he got that from. From what it seems, all things are equal both in the locker room and on the field."
Kolb sat out practice this past week with a thigh contusion but head coach Ken Whisenhunt told reporters that he will be ready to start and that the team will follow a similar QB rotation as past preseasons. Last summer, Kolb threw just seven passes – connecting on four for 68 yards – in Arizona’s preseason opener. Skelton went 6 for 10 for 94 yards and a touchdown in the 24-18 win over the Oakland Raiders as a 3.5-point road underdog.
Replacement refs
With a labor dispute between the NFL and its officials stretching into the preseason, the league will use replacement referees for Sunday’s Hall of Fame Game.
Bettors are debating the impact of these second-string officials, unsure if it will mean more or less penalties. According to hulking NFL veteran official Ed Hochuli, replacement refs during the 2001 season threw roughly five flags per game – much fewer than the 12-14 tossed by regular officials.
Last season, the Saints were ninth in the league in fewest penalty yards per game with 48.3. The Cardinals were the sixth-most penalized team in terms of yardage in 2011, averaging 62.3 penalty yards per game. Could replacement officials miss some of those tough calls in the trenches, giving Arizona an advantage? We'll find out Sunday night.
New Orleans notes
-- The Saints will be without both starting cornerbacks for Sunday’s game. Jabari Greer underwent sports hernia surgery Thursday and Patrick Robinson is nursing an injured shoulder. Rookie receiver Nick Toon will also miss the game after hurting his foot in practice this week.
-- A giant billboard of suspended head coach Sean Peyton was put up in the Saints’ indoor practice facility with the words “Do Your Job” on it, the idea of owner Tom Benson. The slogan was what Peyton told his team and staff after being dealt a season-long ban due to the Saints’ bounty scandal. Peyton was cleared by the NFL to attend the Hall of Fame ceremony in Canton this weekend.
Arizona notes
-- The Cardinals will be short in the back field with running back Beanie Wells on the PUP list and young rusher Ryan William ruled out while recovering from a torn patella tendon injury last season. That leaves Arizona with Alphonso Smith, LaRod Stephens-Howling, William Powell and Thomas Clayton. Smith rushed for a total of 102 yards and one touchdown while Stephens-Howling posted 167 total yards on the ground in 2011.
-- Whisenhunt has posted two 0-4 SU preseason campaigns during his first five seasons calling the shots for the Cardinals and owns a 7-13 career win/loss mark in the tune-ups. That has parlayed itself into an 8-11-1 ATS count.
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