Mac Jones and the Patriots passing attack will find the end zone | Creighton-Arizona St. will be a low scoring affair

Texas men's basketball team is scheduled to host Rice tonight at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, but don't expect to see coach Chris Beard on the sideline. Beard was arrested early Monday morning for allegedly strangling a person. Beard was booked at the Travis County Sheriff's Office at 4:18 a.m. local time and is facing a third-degree assault charge.

Texas issued the following statement:

"The university is aware of the situation regarding Chris Beard. We are continuing to gather information and monitoring the legal process."

Beard remained in custody as of early Monday afternoon.

Elsewhere:

• Mississippi State coach Mike Leach remains in critical condition.
• Nobody wants to play the Detroit Lions right now.
• Week 14 NFL grades.

All times Eastern, and all odds via Caesars Sportsbook

Patriots at Cardinals, 8:15 p.m. | TV: ESPN

• Key Trend: The Cardinals have allowed 10 passing touchdowns in their last four games.
• The Pick: Mac Jones Over 1.5 Passing TD (+133)

Before the game between the Rams and Raiders on Thursday night, I wrote about how you did not have to watch the game. No law requires you to do so, and nobody would take away your Football Fan Card if you skipped it. While that game had a remarkable ending, it was an ending borne from both teams being bad, which is why you shouldn't have watched it.

Well, nobody will hold it against you if you skip tonight's affair, either. The Cardinals are 4-8 on the season, including 1-6 at home. They've lost two straight. The Patriots are 6-6 but have lost two straight themselves and have one of the least-inspiring offenses in the league. But they have a matchup they can take advantage of tonight, and it's one you can get in on to give yourself a reason to watch if you absolutely have to.

The Cardinals love giving up passing touchdowns. Arizona has allowed 10 passing touchdowns in its last four games. That's tied for the second-most since the start of November, but the three teams that have allowed 11 (Kansas City, Tennessee and Jacksonville) have all played at least five games. KC and Tennessee have played six.

This isn't anything out of the ordinary for the Cardinals, who have allowed 24 passing touchdowns on the season, which ranks 29th in the league. Their passing touchdown rate against of 5.5% ranks 31st.

The Cardinals' defense has allowed at least two passing touchdowns in five of its last six games. The only QB to fail to do so was Rams backup John Wolford. Now, it's important to point out that Mac Jones has only thrown for two touchdowns in one game this season, but it was two weeks ago against the Vikings. That's a concern because the Patriots' offensive play-calling makes you wonder if it isn't a defensive coordinator calling plays at times because it's so conservative, but if ever there was a matchup for the Patriots to exploit through the air, this is it.

Here's what SportsLine is saying about the game:If you're looking for a more traditional play, two SportsLine experts are on the same side of the spread tonight.

No. 21 Creighton vs. Arizona State, 9 p.m | TV: FS1
The Pick: Under 142 (-110) --It was only a few weeks ago that Creighton looked to be on the verge of having an outstanding season. The Blue Jays knocked off Arkansas 90-87 in the Maui Invitational a day after beating Texas Tech to improve to 6-0 and reach the final. They would lose a close one to Arizona, 81-79, the following day. While the loss hurt, the overall performance suggested good things to come for Creighton. But they've lost three more since, and while one was another close loss to an elite team in Texas, losses to Nebraska and BYU are somewhat concerning.

Tonight they face an Arizona State team that is 9-1 but hasn't been tested to the same extent Creighton has. That said, it's picked up nice wins against Michigan, Colorado and Stanford. The Sun Devils have been great defensively but don't bring much shooting, particularly behind the arc. They like to get to the free-throw line, but nobody in the country is better at not sending teams to the line than Creighton. So while I like Creighton to win and cover, I think the better bet here is the under, as Arizona State should struggle to score, but the Sun Devils' defense could provide problems for Creighton just as easily.

New Mexico at San Francisco, 11:30 p.m | TV: None
The Pick: San Francisco +4 (-110) --We're testing the limits of your degeneracy tonight. Not only am I including a game that won't begin until 11:30 p.m. ET, but it's not televised. I'm straight-up telling you to bet on a game you won't be able to watch. All you're going to do is place the bet and find out if you won in the morning. Are you ready for this level of dedication to the craft?

If so, take the Dons. New Mexico is getting too much credit for its 9-0 start to the season with this line. Yes, the Lobos picked up a nice win against Saint Mary's on the road a couple of weeks ago, but that's the only text New Mexico has faced. Its schedule strength ranks 316th nationally. San Francisco hasn't been lining up a bunch of heavy hitters, either, but it's 8-2 and has a deeper rotation than the Lobos do. That's something that will matter as the Lobos play their second game in three nights while the Dons have been off since Wednesday.

SportsLine Pick of the Day:While I'm not including any NBA bets tonight, the Projection Model has an A-graded play on the total in tonight's game between San Antonio and Cleveland.