Los Angeles Rams' Sean McVay Scouts Arizona Cardinals Ahead Of Sunday's Matchup

Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay has had a great deal of success against the Arizona Cardinals, but that doesn't mean he's taking Sunday's game any less seriously.

Throughout his tenure with the Los Angeles Rams, Sean McVay has had more success against the Arizona Cardinals than any other team.

Since McVay arrived in 2017, the Rams have largely dominated their NFC West rivals, going 11-2 in that time. The highlight came in the form of a 34-11 beatdown in the 2021 playoffs, which kick-started the Rams' run to a Super Bowl 56 championship.

With the two teams set to renew their rivalry on Sunday, McVay, who is questionable to even coach the game due to having a kid on the way, isn't letting his success against the Cardinals get to his head. On the contrary, he actually praised his division rival ahead of their latest showdown.

“Yeah, I think it's all a game-by-game situation and scenario so I don't necessarily look at it that way," McVay told reporters. "We didn't have success in one of the games against them last year. What I do know is this, when you flip the tape on, kind of talked about this a little bit earlier in the week, you see some familiar faces.

Cardinals quarterback Joshua Dobbs and Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford / FanStreamSports.com

"I'm seeing a really impressive operation in all three phases. I think (Cardinals coach) Jonathan Gannon has done an excellent job. You can just see they’re really sound schematically. They put a lot of pressure on you in some of the different situational things that come up throughout the course of the game."

Many expected the Cardinals to be the worst team in the NFL this season, but that hasn't been the case through five games. While they haven't been great with a 1-4 record, they've been a scrappy team able to hang in there with all their opponents. Their one victory also came in a two-score win over the heavily-favored Dallas Cowboys, so they aren't a team to be taken lightly.

Meanwhile, the Rams have had some ups and downs this season. They've also been better than many expected, particularly on offense with the emergence of rookie receiver Puka Nacua. That said, they're still 2-3 and seem to be a team with an eye toward the future rather than one competing right now.

The Rams are currently seven-point favorites for Sunday's matchup, but they're going to need to be sharp to beat their longtime rivals.

"I think the tape is where the real truth is and seeing a lot of really good football in all three phases and we got to be ready to go and we're looking forward to it.”