Los Angeles Rams vs Arizona Cardinals Match Player Stats On Oct 02, 2016

The Sports Xchange
Oct 2, 2016

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Los Angeles Rams forced five turnovers, knocked Carson Palmer out of the game with a head injury, and hung on to beat the Arizona Cardinals 17-13 on Sunday at University of Phoenix Stadium.

Case Keenum connected with Brian Quick on a 4-yard touchdown pass with 2:36 left to play to put the Rams back in front and ultimately seal the victory.

The win improved the Rams to 3-1 for the first time since 2006, when they won four of their first five games. The loss drops the Cardinals to a surprising 1-3. Last season, Arizona went 13-3 in cruising to the NFC West title and advancing to the NFC Championship.

Aaron Donald broke through the Cardinals' offensive line regularly during Sunday's game and toward the end, made it hurt for Arizona as he knocked down Palmer and the back of the quarterback's head slammed down hard on the field.

Palmer was evaluated for a concussion on the sideline and was replaced by backup Drew Stanton. After the Rams scored, Stanton completed a pair of passes, but his third attempt was intercepted by Mark Barron. The Rams were hoping to run out the clock, but eventually were forced to punt.

That gave Stanton and the Cardinals one last chance to win. They got the ball back with 1:01 remaining and moved the ball to the 37-yard line, but the game ended on Stanton's second interception -- this one by T.J. McDonald.

Keenum completed 18 of 30 passes for 266 yards and two touchdowns -- both to Quick, who only caught two passes on the day.

Palmer was 23 of 36 for 288 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He also lost a fumble, as did running back David Johnson, who finished with 83 yards on 17 carries.

Todd Gurley was held to just 33 yards on 19 rushing attempts.

The Cardinals took their first lead of the game at the end of the third quarter on a 21-yard field goal by Chandler Catanzaro. That gave Arizona a 13-10 lead. The Rams, however, scored on their second possession of the fourth quarter on Keenum's 5-yard touchdown pass to Quick, which proved to be the difference maker.

For the fourth time in four games, the Cardinals failed to a score a single point in the first quarter. They found themselves tied 10-10 at the half, however.

The Rams scored first when on their third possession, Keenum found receiver Brian Quick on a curl route and Quick was able to shake cornerback Marcus Cooper and then turn up field and lose safety Tony Jefferson for a 65-yard touchdown. Jefferson slid out of position and couldn't get back to his feet in time to tackle Quick, who raced down the right sideline untouched.

A penalty on Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson negated a third-down sack of Keenum by safety Deone Bucannon and kept the Rams' drive alive.

After a 25-yard field goal by Arizona's Chandler Catanzaro, who was working with a new long snapper in Aaron Brewer and a new holder in punter Ryan Quigley, the Rams were able to force the Cardinals' secondary into more mistakes.

Keenum connected with tight end Lance Kendricks for a 23-yard gain in which Arizona missed tackles left and right. Then Kenny Britt got wide open behind the secondary because of a blown coverage, catching a pass that covered 34 yards. The Rams had to a settled for a 29-yard field goal by Zuerlein.

Los Angeles was forced to punt from deep in its own territory on its next possession and John Brown's 19-yard return gave Arizona great field position. But any hope the Cardinals had of scoring a touchdown went right out the window when Palmer was intercepted by cornerback Trumaine Johnson.

The Rams couldn't take advantage of the turnover, and Palmer led a masterful drive that included four long completions capped by a 5-yard touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone to Michael Floyd. Catanzaro's extra point tied the score.

NOTES: With his first-quarter reception of 12 yards, Fitzgerald has now caught at least one pass in 183 consecutive games, tying Art Monk for the sixth-longest streak in NFL history. ... At halftime, the Cardinals inducted former longtime WR Roy Green into their Ring of Honor. Green spent 12 seasons with the franchise and is the 16th person to go into the Ring of Honor. ... Rams S T.J. McDonald was evaluated for a concussion during the third quarter, but returned to the game in the fourth. ... Cardinals RB Chris Johnson left the game in the fourth quarter with a groin injury and did not return.