Cardinals vs Cowboys Prediction, Odds, Best Bets - Nov 1, 2026
Dallas just hung 38 points on Philadelphia at home, and Arizona arrives at AT&T Stadium allowing nearly 30 points a game with a backup quarterback running the offense. The Cardinals need Trey McBride to turn this into a shootout they probably cannot sustain.
The Matchup
Dallas's passing game comes in hot, and the Week 7 win over Philadelphia showed all of it at once. Dak Prescott threw 3 touchdown passes on just 15 of 27 for 212 yards, Javonte Williams ran 25 times for 155 yards and a touchdown, and CeeDee Lamb caught 5 passes for 74 yards and 2 touchdowns in the 38-21 win.
The season numbers back the afternoon up. Prescott has 1,851 yards, 13 touchdowns and 5 interceptions, Lamb has 53 catches for 651 yards and 6 touchdowns, and Williams has 110 carries for 472 yards and 8 touchdowns. Dallas averages 27.0 points a game and now gets an Arizona defense allowing 29.7 points a game, the worst mark in this matchup.
Arizona's offense asks a lot of Jacoby Brissett. Brissett is the Cardinals' quarterback for this trip, and he threw 48 times for 272 yards and a touchdown in the 30-16 loss at Denver, leaning on Trey McBride for 10 catches and 111 yards and the score. McBride is a genuine problem over the middle, but the support around Brissett is thin.
James Conner is on injured reserve with a foot injury, so Arizona's lead back is gone, and Jeremiyah Love is out with an ankle injury behind him. A Cardinals team averaging 20.3 points a game and 3.7 yards a carry has to win this through the air, on the road, against a home team that just scored 38.
Dallas does give something back. KaVontae Turpin is out with a rib injury, which costs the Cowboys their return threat, and the Dallas defense has taken the ball away only 4 times all season. Arizona's route into this game is real, it is just narrow, and it runs entirely through Brissett protecting the ball and McBride owning the seams.
Key Factors
Third down is where Dallas separates. The Cowboys convert 49.4 percent of their third downs while Arizona converts 37.7 percent, and that gap compounds over a long afternoon. Dallas sustains drives with Lamb and George Pickens, who caught 9 passes for 130 yards and a touchdown against Tampa Bay, while Arizona's drives stall and hand the ball back to a home offense that does not need the help. Field position and fatigue both tilt the same way.
McBride against the Dallas coverage is Arizona's one clear edge. Dallas has only 2 interceptions this season, so Brissett is not throwing into a secondary that punishes mistakes, and McBride just posted a 10-catch game against a better defense in Denver. If Arizona schemes him free on early downs, the Cardinals can move the ball in chunks and keep this uncomfortable into the fourth quarter.
The counterpoint is the back door, and it is wide open. Dallas allows 25.7 points a game, and a defense with 4 takeaways in seven games does not close teams out. If Brissett protects the ball and McBride controls the middle the way he did at Denver, Arizona hangs within a touchdown all day and one late score against a prevent defense ruins the Dallas cover.
Arizona's defense gives up points to everyone, and Dallas at home is the wrong opponent for a backup quarterback who has to chase the game. The Cowboys' passing attack is in rhythm, the Cardinals are missing their lead back, and the standard -110 price is fair for the home side here. Take the Cowboys -6.5.
Game information
| DATE | Sunday (11/1) |
|---|---|
| START TIME | 1:00 PM ET |
| HOW TO WATCH | FOX |
| VENUE | AT&T Stadium, Arlington |
| SPREAD | Cowboys -6.5 |
| TOTAL | 54.5 |
| MONEYLINE | Cowboys -298 |
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