The Green Bay Packers (6-1) and Arizona Cardinals (7-0) will meet on Thursday night for a battle between two NFC heavyweights at State Farm Stadium in Glendale.
Here’s how the staff at Packers Wire believes the Week 8 showdown with the Cardinals will go down:
Zach Kruse (5-2): Cardinals 30, Packers 24
This certainly feels like a spot where everyone will count the Packers out but the team rallies around the adversity of the situation and plays a terrific football game. J.J. Watt missing the contest makes picking the Packers really tempting, but Matt LaFleur’s team is still facing a massive mountain to climb. No Za’Darius Smith, Jaire Alexander, David Bakhtiari or Davante Adams. On the road. Short week. A terrific opponent with a terrific quarterback. I think the Cardinals win, but I also think the Packers will have late chances to steal the game, and the performance overall will be both uplifting and potentially valuable down the road. Remember when the Packers went into Atlanta in 2010 and nearly beat the Falcons, and then came back full of confidence a few months later and ransacked the place during the playoffs? This is a great measuring stick game for the short-handed Packers. A win would be great, but going the distance with a top NFC contender in their own house without four All-Pros and several other starters would also be impressive.
Jack Wepfer (5-2): Packers 30, Cardinals 28
The Packers took care of Washington in a workaday fashion, but LaFleur implied that the decision to hold back Preston Smith was so he’d be ready this week. I think the Packers have had this game circled on the calendar for awhile. While the Cardinals are no doubt a good team, my hunch tells me Green Bag sneaks one by. Yes, the Packers will be without a few preferred starters, one possibly being Davante Adams, but we’ve seen Rodgers operate in these environments before and he’s remarkably good. He plays more within the system and gets the ball out quicker. I see the Packers playing a 60 minute game of keep away from the electric Cardinals offense. They hang on, Just barely.
Brandon Carwile (5-2): Cardinals 30, Packers 24
This would have been a great game if both sides were healthy. Unfortunately, the Packers are pretty banged and could really use a bye week. They will get a mini-bye after leaving Arizona, which is good news as they prepare to face the Chiefs the following week. Aaron Rodgers has put together some magical performances in the past, and while I think he’ll play well tonight, it simply won’t be enough. The Cardinals have too much fire power on offense and Green Bay won’t be able to keep up.
Joe Kipp (5-2): Packers 27, Cardinals 24
Green Bay will obviously be short a few weapons, but do we remember the last time Aaron Rodgers was without Davante Adams last season in New Orleans? Matt LaFleur is one of the best play callers in the NFL. He’ll have plenty of play designs centered around Aaron Jones, Robert Tonyan and Randall Cobb. Also, no JJ Watt for the Cardinals essentially cancels out the impact of no Davante for the Packers. Green Bay sneaks by to hand Arizona their first loss of the season.
Brennen Rupp (3-0): Cardinals 34, Packers 30
The Green Bay Packers will likely be without their top three wide receivers. Not ideal for a game that likely will be a shootout. Green Bay’s defense has held up well, despite missing Jaire Alexander. Kyler Murray is an MVP candidate and he has no shortage of weapons. It would not be shocking to see the Packers hand the Cardinals their first loss of the season, but I expect the Packers to lose a shootout in the desert.
| Writer | Prediction | Score | Record |
| Zach Kruse | Loss | 30-24 | 5-2 |
| Jack Wepfer | Win | 30-28 | 5-2 |
| Brandon Carwile | Loss | 30-24 | 5-2 |
| Joe Kipp | Win | 28-24 | 5-2 |
| Brennen Rupp | Loss | 34-30 | 3-0 |
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