Arizona Cardinals fall 17-3 St. Louis Rams in Thursday night divisional game

• 9 months ago
• Update
• 0 comments

1. Link
2. Facebook
3. Twitter

Cardinals vs. Rams 2012: Poor showing on offense hurts Arizona

The Arizona Cardinals fell to the St. Louis Rams, 17-3, on Thursday night, snapping their four-game winning streak and temporarily halting the most surprising storyline so far this NFL season. The game was an all-around poor performance from Arizona, but the team's worst showing came from the offense, according to SB Nation's Arizona Cardinals' blog Revenge of the Birds.

"It was a bad night for the offense. And that's putting it in kind terms. QB Kevin Kolb went 28 for 50 for 289 yards, 0 TD's, and 0 INT's. Larry Fitzgerald led all receivers for the Cardinals with 8 receptions for 92 yards. But what was an even bigger story (And not in a good way) for the Cardinals was the atrocious play of the Offensive Line. Kolb was sacked a total of 9 times, totaling in a loss of 52 yards. Linemen Bobby Massie and D'Anthony Batiste were abused all night. This affected the run-game as well, as RB Ryan Williams was only able to garner 33 yards off 14 rushes. Overall, it was a game that the Cardinals offense should probably forget really fast."

With the loss, the Cardinals fell to 4-1 and the Rams improved to 3-2. Arizona hosts the Buffalo Bills next Sunday at 4:05 p.m.

Fantasy Football Week 5 - Keepers (via sbnation)

• 9 months ago
• Update
• 0 comments

1. Link
2. Facebook
3. Twitter

Cardinals vs Rams score update: Cardinals trail 10-3 heading into 4th quarter

The Arizona Cardinals trail the St. Louis Rams 10-3 after three quarters in what has been a tough defensive battle all game.

Both teams scored on their first possession and it looked for a moment like the game might be headed for an offensive shootout, but the defenses have dominated since. Just three points have been scored following the teams' first possessions with neither team scoring in the third quarter.

Kevin Kolb has thrown for 179 yards, but has faced nearly constant pressure. Kolb has been sacked seven times and hit nine times. Arizona has been unable to slow down the pass rush with any kind of a running game. Ryan Williams has just 21 rushing yards on 13 carries while the Cardinals are averaging 2.1 yards per carry as a team.

While the offense has struggled, the defense has been stout. After completing 3-of-4 passes to start the game, Rams quarterback Sam Bradford is just 6-of-20 for 90 yards through three quarters. The Rams appeared to be in position to add some points but Patrick Peterson intercepted Bradford in the endzone.

• 9 months ago
• Update
• 0 comments

1. Link
2. Facebook
3. Twitter

Cardinals vs Rams score update: Rams take 10-3 lead into halftime

The St. Louis Rams jumped out to an early 7-0 lead on Thursday and took a 10-3 lead into halftime of their game against the Arizona Cardinals.

Both teams scored on their opening possession, but the offenses have been somewhat stagnant since. Arizona had a chance to cut the lead to 10-6, but Jay Feely missed a 40-yard field goal attempt. The Cardinals have dominated time of possession leading 19:44 to 10:16 but hold just a 151 to 100 advantage in total yards.

After completing 7-of-10 passes in the first quarter, Kevin Kolb completed just 7-of-17 passes in the second quarter. Larry Fitzgerald and Andre Roberts combined for six catches in the first half, but were held without a catch during the second quarter. Instead, Rob Housler leads the Cardinals in receiving with three catches for 45 yards. The Cardinals have been unable to get much of a running game going with Ryan Williams gaining just 30 yards on nine carries.

Following the first touchdown drive, the Arizona defense has done a good job of limiting the Rams. St. Louis racked up 69 yards on their first drive but have just 31 since. Arizona will receive the ball to begin the second half.

• 9 months ago
• Update
• 0 comments

1. Link
2. Facebook
3. Twitter

Cardinals vs Rams score update: Rams lead 7-3 after the first quarter

The St. Louis Rams lead the Arizona Cardinals 7-3 after the first quarter of Thursday's game. The Rams jumped out to an early 7-0 lead, but Arizona came back with a field goal on its first drive.

St. Louis needed just five plays to get in the endzone with Sam Bradford hitting Lance Kendricks for a seven-yard touchdown. Bradford completed 3-of-4 passes on the drive, including a 44-yard completion to Danny Amendola. The drive took just over two minutes, putting the Cardinals in an early hole.

Arizona was able to come back with a field goal as part of a 17-play drive that took over nine minutes of the first quarter. Kevin Kolb is off to a good start for Arizona, completing 7-of-10 passes in the quarter. He has targeted Larry Fitzgerald and Andre Roberts on seven pass attemps with both players finishing the first quarter with three receptions.

With the long drive, Arizona dominated time of possession in the first quarter, 11:06 to 3:54. The Cardinals will begin the second quarter with a 3rd and 6 from the St. Louis 48-yardline.

• 9 months ago
• Update
• 0 comments

1. Link
2. Facebook
3. Twitter

NFL schedule 2012, Week 5: Cards go for 5-0 on national TV

The Arizona Cardinals will look to stay undefeated when they travel to St. Louis on Thursday night as part of Week 5 of the 2012 NFL schedule. The Cardinals are coming off an overtime win against Miami, while the Rams held off the Seahawks and are now 2-2. The two will face off at 6:20 p.m. MT on NFL Network.

Elsewhere around the NFC West, the Seahawks make a cross-country trip to visit the Carolina Panthers at 2:05 p.m. Sunday on FOX. Seattle is likely feeling fortunate that the game was not scheduled in the typical early start for East Coast teams, as it has historically struggled at that time.

The 49ers will try to keep pace with the Cardinals when they host the Bills on Sunday at Candlestick Park. San Francisco is 3-1 and trails Arizona by one game in the division. That game kicks off at 2:25 p.m. on CBS.

Full NFL schedule (all times MT):

Thursday

Cardinals at Rams -- 6:20 p.m., NFL Network

Sunday

Falcons at Redskins -- 11 a.m., FOX

Ravens at Chiefs -- 11 a.m., CBS

Eagles at Steelers -- 11 a.m., FOX

Packers at Colts -- 11 a.m., FOX

Dolphins at Bengals -- 11 a.m., CBS

Browns at Giants -- 11 a.m., CBS

Seahawks at Panthers -- 2:05 p.m., FOX

Bears at Jaguars -- 2:05 p.m., FOX

Bills at 49ers -- 2:25 p.m., CBS

Broncos at Patriots -- 2:25 p.m., CBS

Titans at Vikings -- 2:25 p.m., CBS

Chargers at Saints -- 6:20 p.m., NBC

Monday

Texans at Jets -- 6:30 p.m., ESPN

For a complete list of games, visit SI.com's NFL schedule page.

• 9 months ago
• Update
• 0 comments

1. Link
2. Facebook
3. Twitter

John Skelton returns to first full practice after ankle injury

Quarterback John Skelton of the Arizona Cardinals has returned to practice in full, reports Darren Urban of Cards Chatter. It should be noted that there were no pads used today, so it remains to be seen if he'll fully practice in contact action.

The big question is: Will the starting job still be available now that the Cardinals are 4-0 without him?

Skelton was named the starting quarterback during the preseason after Kevin Kolb struggled in one of his starts, and Skelton came in and performed better. Skelton got the start in Game 1 of the regular season, but didn't have a great opener, completing 14 of 28 passes for 149 yards and an interception. He then suffered a right ankle sprain that forced him out of the game.

Kolb has come in and performed quite well. He's completed over 62% of his passes and averaged about seven yards per pass attempt while throwing seven touchdowns and two interceptions.

This story originally appeared at SB Nation.