ESPN’s Barnwell: Cardinals have fourth-easiest Super Bowl path

Two wins or 120 minutes.

However you view it, the Arizona Cardinals are close to Super Bowl 50, and as the NFC’s No. 2 seed have a very legitimate chance to get there.

But according to ESPN.com’s Bill Barnwell, they do not have the easiest road to Santa Clara.

In ranking the easiest Super Bowl paths for the eight teams remaining, Barnwell placed the Cardinals at No. 4, ahead of Green Bay, Seattle, Carolina and Pittsburgh.

Noting that should they knock off Green Bay in the Divisional round they will face either the Carolina Panthers or Seattle Seahawks, Barwnwell says the ESPN FPI gives the Cardinals Super Bowl odds of 41.9 percent.

Pick a metric — DVOA, FPI, points differential — and the Cardinals are hosting the worst team left in the postseason at home this week. On paper, that’s the friendliest matchup left for any team in this year’s postseason, and it’s reflected in the Vegas line; the Cardinals are the first team in the playoffs to be favored by more than a touchdown. Arizona might be struggling without star cornerback Tyrann Mathieu, but the Packers don’t have the receivers to take advantage of Justin Bethel, and the seemingly-serious injury suffered by Davante Adams on Sunday didn’t help matters.

The Cardinals aren’t any higher on this list, though, because their conference championship game promises to be tough. You would rather play any of the AFC teams than line up against the Panthers or Seahawks, even if the Cardinals get to play Seattle at home. We only have to look back at Week 17 to get a reminder of how good the Seahawks can look in Arizona. Poll most Cardinals fans and I suspect they might rather travel to Charlotte and face the Panthers than line up for a rubber match against Russell Wilson & Co.

The Cardinals faced off with the Packers just a few weeks ago, beating them 38-8 in Glendale. They sacked Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers eight times while holding him to just 15-of-28 for 151 yards and one touchdown with one interception. Arizona quarterback Carson Palmer threw for 265 yards and two touchdowns with one interception.

As for whether or not the Cardinals would rather play the Seahawks or Panthers, that’s an interesting question they hope to be able to answer.

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