Cardinals vs 49ers Prediction, Odds & Best Bets for Week 18 (San Francisco Shows No Mercy in NFC West Showdown)

Cardinals vs 49ers Week 18 Game Info

2022 NFL Regular Season — Week 18
Arizona Cardinals (4-12, 3-4 Away) vs. San Francisco 49ers (12-4, 7-1 Home)
Date: Sunday, Jan. 8, 2023
Time: 4:25 p.m. ET
Venue: Levi's Stadium — Santa Clara, CA
Coverage: FOX

The Arizona Cardinals will look to play spoiler against a division rival when they visit the San Francisco 49ers in Week 18 NFL action. The Cardinals have dropped six games in a row following their 20-19 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday. Tight end Trey McBride logged 78 yards and 1 touchdown.

Meanwhile, the 49ers have now won nine games in a row after taking down the Las Vegas Raiders by a score of 37-34 in overtime in Week 17. Running back Christian McCaffrey led the offense with 193 total yards and 1 touchdown on 25 touches. Safety Tashaun Gipson's OT interception proved crucial.

Cardinals vs 49ers Odds & Spread

All NFL betting lines, odds and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
Moneyline: ARI: (+640) | SF: (-950)
Spread: ARI: +14 (-110) | SF: -14 (-110)
Total: 40.5 — Over: (-110) | Under: (-110)

The 49ers enter this contest as heavy home favorites on the moneyline and spread on FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 4:25 p.m. ET clash also features one of the lower totals on the Week 18 slate at 40.5 points.

Cardinals vs 49ers Prediction & Pick

There's a lot to keep an eye on in this game. Arizona head coach Kliff Kingsbury could very well be coaching for his job and legendary defensive end JJ Watt is set to play in his final NFL game. The Cardinals could also end their season on a high note by beating a heated division rival on the road.

The 49ers have too much to play for to let that happen, though. Recent losses by the Philadelphia Eagles leaves the No. 1 seed up for grabs heading into Week 18. Look for San Francisco to show no mercy with a defense that ranks first in DVOA rating and an offense that ranks seventh in DVOA rating.

I expect San Francisco to earn a 10-game winning streak for the first time since 1994 on Sunday.

Final Score Prediction: Cardinals: 14 | 49ers: 28

Cardinals vs 49ers Betting Trends

- Arizona is 11-4 straight up in its last 15 games against San Francisco.
- The total has hit the under in four of Arizona's last five games in January.
- San Francisco is 6-1 against the spread (ATS) in its last seven games.
- The total has hit the over in four of San Francisco's last five games.

Cardinals vs 49ers Best Bet

The 49ers have not missed a beat since quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo went down with a foot injury and they were forced to call upon rookie Brock Purdy. San Francisco has scored at least 28 points in four of its last five games and Purdy has tossed 10 touchdowns compared to only 4 interceptions.

On the other side, Arizona has almost nothing left to play for and gave up a whopping 38 points to the 49ers back in Week 11. The Cardinals have posted the ninth-worst total DVOA rating in the NFL, too, so don't expect pros like McCaffrey or tight end George Kittle to have any issues scoring on Sunday.

Bet: San Francisco 49ers Total Points Over 27 (-112)

Larry Rupp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Larry Rupp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username phillyfan424. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel. 

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.