3 big time matchups for Arizona Cardinals vs. Rams in Week 6

3 - Cardinals third down defense vs. Rams third down offense

One way for the Cardinals to avoid another poor performance on defense that we saw last week is to get better at stopping teams on third down. Through five weeks, the Redbirds have allowed an astounding 47.5 percent conversions against rate. And by helping opponents keep drives alive, they’re only making a bad situation worse by tiring themselves out defensively. 

This will be a tough challenge for the Cards as, despite how poorly Matthew Stafford has played so far, the Rams are converting on 43.7 percent of all their third down attempts. This ranks ninth in the league if you’re wondering, and significantly higher than the Bengals 34.3 percent. 

To the Cardinals credit, they held the Bengals in check on third down last week for most of the afternoon, as Joe Burrow and Company finished just 5 for 14 (35.7 percent) in the category. But they will be facing an opponent more capable of keeping drives alive on third down in Week 6, and the Redbirds must put up a repeat effort. 

(Statistics and data provided by Pro-Football-Reference)