My early Cardinals vs. Giants prediction and NFL picks call for the Arizona Cardinals to pick up a road win to even both teams' records as they head in opposite trajectories.
The Cardinals are 1-2 but have reasons for optimism, while the New York Giants are 2-1 but seemingly on the brink of disaster.
Arizona opens as the road favorite in the 1 p.m. ET kickoff on CBS for Sunday, Oct. 4.
Cardinals vs Giants predictions
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Early Cardinals vs Giants spread pick: Cardinals -1.5
The spread will likely increase as the week goes on, but I’d stick with the Arizona Cardinals until -2.5 and up to 55%.
Arizona found its offense in a tight Week 3 loss to San Francisco, putting up 30 points, nearly doubling its two-week total. Trey McBride and Michael Wilson have a good connection with quarterback Jacoby Brissett, and Brissett found Marvin Harrison Jr. this week, after a one-target outing in Week 2.
More importantly, the Cardinals finally unveiled third-overall pick Jeremiyah Love, who got 21 carries and five catches, while more than doubling his production to date in his first week as the lead running back. Love got more than half his yards (48 of 90) after contact, showing a glimpse of the breakaway ability he had in college.
Meanwhile, the New York Giants suffered another season-altering injury this week. Seven days after starting quarterback Jaxson Dart’s season ended, top pass rusher Brian Burns suffered what appeared to be an ACL tear. The team is now without key players on both sides of the ball and added quarterback J.J. McCarthy on Monday, though he'll most likely serve as a backup to Jameis Winston in Dart's absence.
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Early Cardinals vs Giants total pick: Under 43.5
The Giants didn’t score a touchdown at home against a bad Titans team, riding four field goals to a 12-7 win. Winston, Dart’s replacement at quarterback, managed just 118 passing yards as the Giants attempted to control the clock with the run game.
McCarthy may be an upgrade, but he’ll have fewer than six days to learn the offense and work with his new teammates, and may still be behind Winston on the depth chart either way.
Through three games, the Giants have scored the fewest points in the NFC.
The Cardinals offense isn’t much better. Brissett is playing a game-manager role at quarterback, and the team also appears to be looking to the run.
The Cardinals and Giants rank 30th and 31st in yards per play on offense, 31st and 30th in yards per pass, and 31st and 29th in offensive penalty yards per game. Expect a slog on offense regardless of who has the ball.
Both teams rank in the Top 5 in time of possession, so expect the clock to keep moving as they run the ball on long drives that tend to end in field-goal attempts.
Cardinals vs Giants odds
For help understanding Kalshi probabilities, see our odds calculator.
- Cardinals vs Giants spread: Giants +1.5
- Cardinals vs Giants moneyline: Cardinals 51%, Giants 49%
- Cardinals vs Giants Over/Under: 43.5
How to watch Cardinals vs Giants
- Date: Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, 1 p.m. ET
- City: East Rutherford, N.J.
- Venue: MetLife Stadium
- TV: CBS
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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