Washington vs. Cardinals 2014 picks and predictions: Arizona thought to win despite QB issues

Arizona attempts to regain its winning formula while Washington desperately searches for a victory.

The Arizona Cardinals are without a clear starting quarterback this week, while Washington is dealing with its own quarterback issues. The Cardinals are 3-1 but coming off a loss to the Denver Broncos in which backup quarterback Drew Stanton sustained a concussion. Washington has been without Robert Griffin since Week 2, leaving it to rely on Kirk Cousins for the foreseeable future.

The Cardinals were playing Stanton because Carson Palmer is dealing with a nerve injury in his shoulder. Palmer has been out since beating the Chargers in the season opener, dealing San Diego its only defeat. This week, both Palmer and Stanton are practicing on a limited basis but head coach Bruce Arians is not sure if either can suit up. If not, Logan Thomas will get his first career start after being drafted in May out of Virginia Tech. Thomas struggled in mop-up duty last week, completing just 1 of 8 passes.

Washington has been a mess since beating the Jaguars in Week 2. Under first-year coach Jay Gruden, Washington has struggled to stop anybody while watching the offense regress behind Cousins. Cousins threw four picks in an embarrassing Thursday Night Football defeat against the New York Giants in Week 4. On Monday, Cousins avoided interceptions but completed just 58.3 percent of his passes in defeat to the Seahawks. Washington has allowed 27.2 points per game, ranking 26th in the NFL.

Over at ESPN, only Adam Schefter thinks Washington can go into Arizona and walk away with a win. The feeling is more split at CBS Sports, with three of the eight experts siding with the road team and half of the men believing Washington will cover the spread. USA Today had no such issue getting a consensus, with all seven predictions going in favor of the Cardinals.

Here at SB Nation, PFT Commenter had the courage to break away from the groupthink and picked Washington to earn its second win.

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