Rams Defense Bends, Doesn't Break, Against Greedy Cardinals Offense

Thanks to a strong effort from the Los Angeles Rams' offense, a career-high 58 passes from Kyler Murray yielded no touchdowns.

The Arizona Cardinals had the Los Angeles Rams over for a playdate on Sunday afternoon and wouldn't let them play with their ball. Los Angeles' defense let their hosts know exactly how they felt about that. 

Arizona, armed with Kyler Murray magic after a dramatic victory in Las Vegas, embarked on several long possessions in a quest to score on their divisional rivals. Despite Murray lofting a career-high 58 passes, they weren't able to break past the goal line, putting in only four Matt Prater field goals in a 20-12 Rams victory. 

The Rams' defensive effort would've been memorable one way or another, as Murray became the victim of Aaron Donald's 100th career NFL sack, all of them earned with a curled horn on his helmet. Well known for speedy endeavors under its current franchise man, Arizona tried to wear out and parch the Rams in the desert: while the time of possession battle was relatively tame (the Cardinals holding the ball for 33:56), they ran 81 plays compared to 46 for the visitors. Making up a good part of that tally was drives of 19, 16, 12, and 17 plays.

Once again, not a single one of those stagings ended in the end zone. 

The Rams' offensive struggles are likely worth discussing, those issues highlighted by a not-so-pleasant brand of team history (Matthew Stafford failing to throw a touchdown pass for the first time in his Los Angeles career). But breakouts beyond Donald clipped the Cardinals' wings and ensured there'd be no repeat performance on his Sin City-based magic. 

Derion Kendrick led the team with nine tackles, part of a day that included crucial fourth down coverage on the otherwise serviceable Malcolm Brown when Arizona tried to push the issues over the third and fourth frames. Terrell Lewis was a constant backfield prescience, earning his first sack of the season and providing additional pressure that made Murray uncomfortable. Alongside Kendrick, Jalen Ramsey got back on the right track with two pass breakups and seven tackles, including a backfield invasion that took down James Conner for a loss and set up another fourth down. 

It's often said that defense wins championships, an axiom the offense/fantasy football-friendly NFL is apparently trying to bury with each passing minute. Until the offense rediscovers its spark, however, it appears that the Rams (2-1) will look to give it a few extra years. 

Prime time awaits the Rams next week when they continue divisional play against the San Francisco 49ers next Monday night (5:15 p.m. PT, ESPN).

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You can follow Geoff Magliocchetti on Twitter @GeoffJMags 

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