Cardinals vs. Cowboys betting preview: Odds, picks, props, trends, injuries, weather and more for Week 9 Monday Night Football

A former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback taken in the top two picks of a draft missed the Monday Night Football game in Week 8, and it was a blowout mainly because of that. Oddsmakers aren't expecting something similar tonight, even though Arizona (2-5) is in the same situation at Dallas (3-4-1) with Kyler Murray not starting to conclude Week 9. The Cowboys are -3 favorites with a huge total of 53.5 for the 8:15 ET kick on ABC and ESPN. 

Be aware that this is the last NFL game before Tuesday's 4 p.m. ET trade deadline. The NFL's version is usually a snoozer compared to deadlines in Major League Baseball or the NBA or even the NHL, but there seems to be chatter it could be fairly busy. We've seen one big trade already Monday with the Eagles getting pass rusher Jaelan Phillips from the Dolphins. There are plenty of other big-name guys potentially on the market in New York Jets running back Breece Hall, Philadelphia receiver A.J. Brown, and pass rushers Maxx Crosby of Las Vegas, Trey Hendrickson of Cincinnati and Bradley Chubb of Miami.

The Cardinals would like to add running back help if possible after losing No. 1 James Conner to a season-ending injury in September and then seeing his primary backup, Trey Benson, land on IR. Murray is the team's leading rusher with only 173 yards, and he missed two games and isn't running nearly as much (29 carries) as in past years, although part of that could be the foot injury that sidelined the former No. 1 overall pick the past two games. 

One book lists Arizona as the +200 favorite to get Hall should the Jets trade him. They might as a pending free agent and considering the team's record, but I'm not sure why the Cards would give up much considering their own record. The SportsLine Projection Model only gives them a 7.3% shot for the playoffs, which equates to +1270 odds. DraftKings lists them at +1800 to get in and -8000 for No. If the team doesn't play a lot better immediately coming out of its bye, Jonathan Gannon might be the next NFL head coach fired. 

DraftKings prices Dallas at +500 for the playoffs with No at -750. The model gives them a 17.7% shot (+465) that rises to 25.9% with a win, which I expect, and drops to 9.5% with a loss. The offense is Super Bowl-caliber, but the defense is terrible thanks in part to the trade of Micah Parsons to Green Bay on the eve of the season. 

Owner Jerry Jones has said he's out there looking in the trade market but doesn't believe his defense is is "one player away" from being good enough to contend. But the Cowboys are among the betting favorites to land those three pass rushers listed above, and they do have those two extra first-round picks from the Packers as potential trade ammunition if needed. 

We'll take you through every aspect of the Cardinals vs. Cowboys game that you need to know before you lock in your bets, including SportsLine expert picks, props, trends, DFS, injury information and everything else that will help you know which plays are worth making for the primetime matchup.

Who wins Cardinals vs. Cowboys in the Week 9 Monday night game, and what critical X-factor makes one side of the spread hit HARD? Join SportsLine right now to see everything you need to know to dominate your Monday Night Football bets, plus get expert picks, model sims, prop bets, DFS lineups, and more!