We can glorify the way Jacoby Brissett has handled the offense all we want, as 25-of-44 passes for 271 yards along with a pair of touchdown passes. But we can’t get over the fact that the Cardinals' defense has been absolutely hemorrhaged by the Los Angeles offense.
It is an understatement to say that Matthew Stafford and company absolutely dominated on the offensive side of the ball. Los Angeles had a field day in both the run and the pass, posting 530 total yards and going all out against a banged-up Arizona Defense.
Coming into Sunday, Arizona was without its No. 2 cornerback in Max Melton, along with game-wrecker rookie defensive tackle Walter Nolen III.
The Rams took full advantage of these inactives, starting with Stafford, who completed 22-of-31 passes for 281 yards with three touchdown passes to his name. Stafford ended the day with a 131.3 passer rating. Utter dominance.
Two of the touchdown passes went to wide receiver Puka Nacua, who hauled in seven catches for 167 yards. Nacua averaged 23.9 yards per catch, as the Arizona secondary had no chance of stopping him.
While the pass game was unstoppable, the two-headed monster at running back may have been even better. Blake Corum saw 12 carries for 128 yards with a pair of touchdowns, while Kyren Williams saw 13 touches for 84 yards, and of course, a touchdown of his own.
While the secondary got fried, the Cardinals’ pass rush couldn’t even touch Matthew Stafford, as he didn’t take a single sack. In fact, they were only able to generate five quarterback pressures on only five of Stafford’s 31 dropbacks.
On a positive note, Arizona saw a career performance from Owen Pappoe, as he recorded 10 total tackles (six solo, four assisted). The 25-year-old stepped big time in the absence of Akeem Davis-Gaither, who is nursing a knee injury.
Other than that, there was not much to cheer for on defense, as the unit was flat-out dominated by one of the most explosive offenses in the league.
The Cardinals will travel to Houston to face the Texans on Sunday. The Rams, on the other hand, will return home to face the Detroit Lions in a matchup with major playoff implications.
As it stands, the Cardinals hold onto a top-five draft pick ahead of the draft in April. It will be very interesting to see what general manager Monti Ossenfort has in store. It is safe to say that a lot of change will take place in the next five or so months.