Cardinals at 49ers: Preview, prediction, odds and pick

Jimmy Garoppolo is now a member of the 49ers, and we’ll see how he handles his new home when the team battles the Cardinals on Sunday in Week 9.

Another week has come and gone for the San Francisco 49ers, and a “0” is still the digit finding its home in the win column. However, the team did find itself winning in one aspect this week, and they’ll hope to utilize that W to get their first win on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals at home.

The 49ers traded with the New England Patriots for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo on Monday night, in a move that could drastically change the course of the franchise over the next few years. While he won’t be sending them to the playoffs this season, and may not even be able to deliver them their first win this year, Garoppolo could be the start of a rebuild for the Niners offense, and Sunday could be the first test for the two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback.

Meanwhile, the Cardinals saw their week go from bad to worse with the Garoppolo deal. They already are coming off an embarrassing shutout loss to the Los Angeles Rams two weeks ago, and they’ll have to play a quarterback coming off their bye that has beaten them just last year when he was on the Patriots.

Odds: Cardinals -2, according to Odds Shark

While the odds have this as a close matchup leaning in the favor or the Cardinals, I personally see the 49ers pulling out their first victory of the year when the boys from Glendale roll into California on Sunday.

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Between Carson Palmer’s absence under center for the Cardinals and the debut of Garoppolo leading the charge for the 49ers, I see the Niners taking control of this one early, and grabbing a close win at home to add a digit to their win column.

Prediction: 49ers 20, Cardinals 17