All Cardinals Staff Predictions: Will Rams Earn Road Win?
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Here's All Cardinals' staff predictions for Week 3's meeting between the Arizona Cardinals and Los Angeles Rams:
Donnie Druin (1-1)
After a thrilling overtime win, can the Cardinals build on their momentum and make it two in a row? The Rams (who also just got their first win of the season) may have other ideas. Arizona seems to be getting healthier minus Rondale Moore, but what side of the Cards will we see come Sunday? Two quarters don't outweigh the previous six bad quarters, and the Rams have had Arizona's number as of late. It's another week of proving me wrong, Cardinals.
LA 26, AZ 21
Kyler Burd (1-1)
It's undeniable that Sean McVay has eaten the Cardinals' lunch in recent years. We all hope that the second half of the Raiders game is what the Cardinals truly look like this season, but they will have to replicate that success for it to be believed. Byron Murphy shut down Davante Adams, but can he do it a second week in a row against Cooper Kupp? Kyler Murray turned it on and led his team to victory, but can he do it from the first to last snap? The Rams are still a good, well-coached team and will be incredibly tough to beat. I think the Cards show a bit more toughness and have a better start, but eventually succumb to McVay and Co.
LA 17, AZ 14
Ryan Sanudo (1-1)
The Cardinals haven’t won a game in their home stadium against the Los Angeles Rams since 2014 and it doesn’t feel likely to change. While the Rams haven’t gotten to the best of starts so far, the Cardinals haven’t shown enough consistency on both sides of the ball. Arizona can’t get away with a bad first half as they did in Week 2, especially against Sean McVay, who has the Cardinals’ number. Kyler Murray has been less-than-stellar in his seven career games vs. the Rams, garnering a 42.5 QBR. The Cardinals need to protect Murray in this game if they want a chance. History is not on the Cardinals' side in this game.
LA 28, AZ 17
Richie Bradshaw (1-1)
The Cardinals showed some serious grit during their comeback victory against the Las Vegas Raiders last week. The offense absolutely refused to stop when it mattered most and the defense was near lights out in the second half including the game-winning scoop-and-score in overtime. It's moments like that that give you hope for a season turnaround.
The Cardinals will once again be put to the test this weekend against division rivals in the Los Angeles Rams.
The Rams, who are the reigning Super Bowl champs, have looked quite mortal to start the season and sit at 1-1 on the year without any definitive evidence that this is still the supposed "team to beat" in the NFC. Arizona can hopefully find a way to capitalize on its division rival's slow start to the year and snipe a crucial NFC West win.
It won't be easy considering the Rams have won 10 of the last 11 matchups, but if the Cardinals can ride the momentum that helped propel them to their comeback victory against the Raiders last week. I believe that the Cardinals will be able to ride this high and catch a sleepy Rams team off guard in Glendale and get the team to 2-1 with a massively important NFC West win.
It won't be pretty, but I have Arizona in this game.
AZ 27, LA 20
Andrew Harbaugh (0-2)
The Cardinals and Rams have quietly built a strong rivalry. Both teams are coming off bounce back wins after opening losses with Arizona nearly dropping the ball short of a win in the process. That being said, this may not be pretty.
The big difference this game is who controls the clock and who controls the pace of the run game. The Cardinals have the better run game but can they avoid the turnovers to the Rams playmakers? I hesitantly say yes…
AZ 27, LA 21
For more Los Angeles Rams analysis and news, click here.
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