San Francisco 49ers vs. Arizona Cardinals: 5 Bold predictions for Week 9

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The San Francisco 49ers take their perfect record to the desert to face the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday Night Football. Bold predictions for the matchup.

Everyone thought the San Francisco 49ers would get their first real test of the season last week as they took on Carolina. Instead, they looked more dominant than ever on both sides of the ball as Kyle Shanahan’s team routed the Panthers, 51-13. On a short week now, the undefeated 49ers go on the road to State Farm Stadium to take on an NFC West foe, the Arizona Cardinals.

Kliff Kingsbury‘s Cardinals saw their three-game winning streak snapped last week in a loss to the Saints. This team has shown flashes of being exciting throughout the year but, ultimately, the pieces are clearly not all in place just yet. The question, though, is if they can challenge the 49ers in Arizona on a short week, which might be the right time to catch San Francisco.

My answer to that is no. The 49ers are clearly the better team and should dominate on Thursday Night Football. To further that point, here are five bold predictions for this matchup to kick off Week 9.

5. Murray sacked 8+ times

Despite the fact that Kyler Murray is an exceptionally mobile quarterback with lightning speed, the rookie signal-caller has already been sacked 26 times in eight games. The reasons are two-fold. First, Murray is a young player still getting his footing, meaning there are going to be times when he holds onto the ball too long. Then the other factor is a horrendous Cardinals offensive line providing him protection — in the loosest sense of that word.

That does not bode well for facing the San Francisco 49ers. The defensive front comprised of Nick Bosa, Dee Ford, DeForest Buckner and Arik Armstead (and even Solomon Thomas) has been tearing every opposing offensive line they’ve faced. And against this Arizona group, they’re going to be a nightmare for Murray.

By the end of the game, Murray isn’t going to want to go back on the field. The 49ers are going to put him into the ground time and again, closing in on 10 sacks for the night.