Cardinals vs Cowboys Prediction 8/22/26 NFL Picks Today

The Dallas Cowboys and the Arizona Cardinals meet Saturday in NFL action from State Farm Stadium in Glendale. Here’s a Cardinals vs Cowboys prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Cardinals vs Cowboys pick.

Dallas Cowboys Betting Preview

The Cowboys had another pretty rough season in 2025. Dallas missed the playoffs for the second consecutive season, limping to a 7-9-1 overall record. That would still land the Cowboys in second place among the NFC East, but wasn’t good enough for a postseason berth. Dallas had a solid offense but the defensive side of the ball was ranked dead last in several statistical metrics including yards and points allowed per game. The result was another futile season that ended on a 1-4 skid.

In their Saturday preseason opener versus the Seattle Seahawks, Dallas was down early but added a couple of scores in the second and third quarters on the way to a 17-7 victory. Joe Milton went a nice 12-of-15 for 107 yards and a TD while Sam Howell had 94 yards and a score on 8-of-14 passing. Camden Brown caught both touchdowns as part of his three grabs for 62 yards.

Arizona Cardinals Betting Preview

Over on the Cardinals’ side, they have two preseason games in the bag already. First came a 33-30 loss to the Carolina Panthers back on August 6 in the annual Hall of Fame Game. Arizona had a 20-17 lead going into the fourth quarter but couldn’t hang on despite some pretty solid quarterback play from Carson Beck (15-of-19; 188 yards; TD) and Kedon Slovis (9-of-10; 106 yards; TD).

In game two versus the Las Vegas Raiders last Thursday, the Cardinals were able to even up their preseason record with a 27-14 victory. Arizona outscored the Raiders 6-0 in the second half along the way. Gardner Minshew led the QBs this time on 101 yards and two scores from 14-of-16 passing. Corey Kiner led the rush with 59 yards and Jalen Brooks hauled in six passes for 52 yards and a touchdown.

Dallas Cowboys @ Arizona Cardinals Betting Trends

Why the Dallas Cowboys will win

• The Cowboys have covered the spread in each of their last seven road openers against NFC East opponents.
• The Cowboys have scored the first touchdown in each of their last eight games played as favorites on the East Coast.

Total Points Facts

• Each of the Cowboys’ last seven road games have gone OVER the total points line.

Dallas Cowboys Player Prop Facts

• Javonte Williams has scored a touchdown in four of his last five appearances.
• Dak Prescott has recorded 294+ passing yards in four of the Cowboys’ last five games against NFC opponents.
• Javonte Williams has recorded 87+ rushing yards in three of his last four appearances against NFC East opponents.
• CeeDee Lamb has recorded 106+ rushing and receiving yards in each of the Cowboys’ last three September games against NFC East opponents.
• Luke Schoonmaker has recorded 12+ receiving yards in each of the Cowboys’ last four games against NFC opponents.
• Dak Prescott has recorded 25+ completions in five of the Cowboys’ last six Sunday games as road favorites.
• KaVontae Turpin ranked 1st in the NFL in kick return yards (1814) last season.

Matchup/League Facts

• Cowboys – 16 different players recorded at least one touchdown last season – equal-most in the NFL.
• Cowboys – two different players recorded 80+ rushing yards in a game last season – equal-most in the NFL.

Why the Arizona Cardinals will win

• The Cardinals have covered the spread in each of their last nine road games in September.
• The road team has won the first half in nine of the Cardinals’ last 10 Week 1 games.

Total Points Facts

• Ten of the Cardinals’ last 11 road games in September have gone UNDER the total points line.

Arizona Cardinals Player Prop Facts

• Trey McBride has scored at least one touchdown in eight of the Cardinals’ last nine games as road underdogs.
• Trey McBride has recorded 55+ receiving yards in each of the Cardinals’ last seven road games.
• Jacoby Brissett has recorded 243+ passing yards in each of the Cardinals’ last five games as heavy underdogs (>+7.0 points).
• Jacoby Brissett has recorded 19+ rushing yards in four of the Cardinals’ last five games as heavy underdogs (>+7.0 points).
• James Conner has recorded 74+ rushing and receiving yards in each of his four previous appearances against the Chargers.
• Jacoby Brissett has recorded 27+ completions in three of the Cardinals’ last four games against AFC opponents.
• Jacoby Brissett recorded the most completions in a single game last season (47 vs 49ers, Week 11).

Matchup/League Facts

• The Cardinals suffered the equal-most losses when leading after Q3 last season (5).
• The Cardinals suffered the equal-most losses when leading at HT last season (6).

Cardinals vs Cowboys Prediction

I might take a stab on the Cards here, but anything can happen in preseason so it’s a coin flip. I’m staying away from this one in reality. Arizona hasn’t looked too bad over their first two exhibition outings, and they took care of a struggling Raiders team quite well last week. In that victory the Cardinals put up 368 total yards (212 passing), 5.4 yards per play, 23 first downs, 8-of-15 on third-down conversions and no turnovers. The defense held Vegas to just 16 first downs and 25:35 in time of possession but didn’t generate any turnovers either.

As for the Cowboys, they looked pretty good on Saturday against the Seahawks, for what it’s worth. Dallas did have 13 penalties (for 103 yards) and a lost fumble, but otherwise notched 338 yards (201 passing) on offense with 21 first downs and 11-of-15 on third-down tries. The defense gave up just 156 yards (49 passing) on the other side with 14 first downs and 3.0 yards per play. If the Cowboys can keep that type of play going they’ll be looking good here.