Cardinals vs. Bills Final Score Prediction for NFL Week 1 (Can the Cardinals Cover?)

The Buffalo Bills are ushering in a new era – one without Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis – in Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season when they host the Arizona Cardinals and star quarterback Kyler Murray.

This is an interesting matchup, as the Cardinals went just 4-13 last season, but closed out the campaign storm, going 3-5 in Murray’s eight starts once he returned from a torn ACL.

Meanwhile, the Bills are looking to not only keep up their strong record at home (7-2 last season), but prove that they can win the AFC East even with a new cast around quarterback Josh Allen.

Allen is one of the leading candidates to win the league’s MVP award, and he’ll look to get off to a strong start as a 6.5-point favorite on Sunday.

One of the hardest things to do in the NFL is predict the final score, but I’m attempting to use the latest odds for this game to do that in Week 1. Even if the final score isn’t right, hopefully this breakdown can help you decide which side to bet on in Week 1.

Cardinals vs. Bills Odds, Spread and Total

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Spread

Cardinals +6.5 (-108)
Bills -6.5 (-112)

Moneyline

Cardinals: +240
Bills: -298

Total

47 (Over -110/Under -110)

Based on these odds, Vegas is giving the Bills nearly a touchdown cushion against this Arizona team. It makes sense Arizona was just a four-win team last season, but Buffalo is going to need to play well to hold off Murray and company.

For what it’s worth, Arizona had three losses by seven points or more in Murray’s eight games in 2023.

Cardinals vs. Bills Final Score Prediction

Earlier this week, I previewed this matchup, and there were some interesting things that I found that support a bet on Arizona on Sunday.

Arizona was 9-8 against the spread as an underdog, and it was 3-5 straight up as a dog with Murray under center. Not only that, but the Cardinals only lost games in 2023 by an average margin of 7.4 points as road dogs – and many of those losses came without Murray at quarterback.

So, this is a lot to ask for the Bills, who are ushering in a very new receiving corps around Josh Allen.

Buffalo was just 5-5 against the spread as a home favorite last season, winning those games by an average margin of 12.9 points per game. There were some blowouts, but the Bills were also upset at home.

I don’t see an upset playing out in this one, but I do think it remains close. A total of 47 points suggests that we’ll see a game in the 20s, but ultimately I think the Cards keep this within on possession now that they have Murray healthy and a better offense around him than last season.

Final Score Prediction: Bills, 23, Cardinals 20

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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