When it was announced that the Kansas City Chiefs would play the Arizona Cardinals in Week 1, they opened as early favorites in the game. Four months later with the game just a week away, the Chiefs remain favorites with an even greater advantage in the point spread.
According to Tipico Sportsbook, Kansas City is now a 4.5-point favorite over Arizona. That’s a full-point increase on the spread compared to their 3.5-point open. The over/under point total remains set at 53.5 points scored. The money line is now -200 for the Chiefs, giving K.C. a 66.67% implied win probability. Keep in mind that Kansas City finished the 2021 NFL season 10-10 against the spread, while Arizona finished 10-8.
It shouldn’t be a big surprise to see the Chiefs gain some traction as we get closer to the Week 1 kickoff. The starting offense and defense were flawless for the team during the course of the preseason, with three consecutive touchdown drives and no points allowed.
Entering the week of practice leading up to the game, the Cardinals are expected to be a bit shorthanded on offense. They will be missing their top receiver in Deandre Hopkins, who is suspended for six games to start the season. They’re also dealing with injuries to TE Zach Ertz and WR Rondale Moore, who both might not be ready to play against K.C. in Week 1.
On top of all that, Kansas City has a dominant 9-3-1 record against the Cardinals, with their most recent win coming during Patrick Mahomes’ MVP-winning season in 2018. That, of course, came before Kyler Murray and Kliff Kingsbury. Murray has a fresh 5-year extension that has put some of the tension from this offseason at ease, but he still has quite a bit to prove on the field. Arizona finished the 2021 NFL season with an 11-6 regular-season record, but they lost in the first round of the playoffs to the eventual Super Bowl-winning Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round.
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