Rams dominate second half, defeat Cardinals 26-9

The Rams struggled offensively for much of the first half, scoring only six points.

But Los Angeles was dominant in the last 30 minutes on Sunday, coming away with a 26-9 victory over division-rival Arizona.

The Cardinals held the ball for 20:58 in the first half, running 42 plays to the Rams’ 20. Los Angeles was also 0-5 on third down in the first 30 minutes.

But L.A. started to get a little rhythm offensively just before the break. Quarterback Matthew Stafford hit receiver Cooper Kupp with a 49-yard deep pass down the right side to get the Rams into scoring position. Brett Maher connected on a 35-yard field goal, making the score 9-6, Cardinals, at halftime.

But then it was all Rams in the second half, with the club scoring 20 unanswered points in the third and fourth quarters.

After running it just three times in the first half, Los Angeles started the third period with nine straight run plays before Stafford hit Kupp with a 13-yard touchdown on the right side.

Then Maher’s 25-yard field goal made it 16-9 with 2:44 left in the third quarter.

The Cardinals had a chance to score at the beginning of the fourth quarter, with the ball on the L.A. 12. But quarterback Joshua Dobbs threw a pass behind Zach Ertz over the middle that was tipped and intercepted by linebacker Christian Rozeboom.

The Rams went down the field and scored with Kyren Williams’ 5-yard touchdown, making it 23-9 and largely putting the game out of reach.

Maher connected on a 43-yard field goal with 4:37 left to cap the scoring.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford finished 15-of-24 passing for 226 yards with a touchdown and no picks.

Williams enjoyed the best day of his young career, taking 20 carries for 158 yards with a touchdown. His longest run of the day was 31 yards. But he was dealing with an ankle issue late in the game that may affect his availability going forward.

In his second game back from a hamstring injury, Kupp caught seven passes for 148 yards. Puka Nacua caught four passes for 26 yards.

Dobbs was 21-of-41 for 235 yards with an interception and a lost fumble. He also led the team with 47 yards rushing.

Now at 3-3, the Rams will stay at home next week to play the Steelers.

The 1-5 Cardinals will be on the road to face the Seahawks

The Rams had only three rushing attempts in the first half.

That changed in a big way to start the third quarter, and it helped Los Angeles reach the end zone and take a 13-9 lead over the Cardinals.

After receiving the second-half kickoff, L.A. ran it eight consecutive times with Kyren Williams and Ronnie Rivers before Matthew Stafford gained a couple of yards on a scramble for a total of nine straight runs.

But then on third-and-9 from the Arizona 13, Stafford found receiver Cooper Kupp open on the right side for a 13-yard touchdown.

It was Kupp’s fourth reception of the day and his first touchdown of 2023. He now has 114 yards and counting on Sunday.

The Rams also converted their first two third downs on the possession. The club ended the first half 0-5 in the category

The Cardinals have controlled the ball and the clock so far on Sunday, but the Rams carried a little momentum into halftime.

Arizona leads Los Angeles 9-6 after two quarters.

The Rams had not done much offensively but got a big play to get on the board just before the half. Quarterback Matthew Stafford hit receiver Cooper Kupp with a 49-yard deep pass down the right side to set up the Rams at the Arizona 26 with 24 seconds remaining in the half. L.A. settled for a 35-yard field goal with eight seconds on the clock to go into halftime down by three.

The Rams will receive the second-half kickoff and will have a chance to double up.

But the Cardinals came out ahead in time of possession 20:58 to 9:02 in the first half. Quarterback Joshua Dobbs was 10-of-17 for 76 yards, also taking five carries for 37 yards.

On the other side, the Rams had just four first downs and were 0-5 on third down. The team ran 20 plays to Arizona’s 42 in the first half in part because the club fumbled a punt return deep in L.A. territory.

With the long ball to Kupp, Stafford finished the first half 8-of-15 passing for 134 yards with no touchdowns and no picks. Kupp has three catches for 101 yards.

The Rams had just three rushing attempts in the first 30 minutes.

Aaron Donald did record a sack on Dobbs, giving him 17 sacks in 19 career games against Arizona — the most he has against any opponent.

UPDATE 7:25 p.m. ET: The scoring was changed to give Donald a tackle for loss instead of a sack on Dobbs.

The Cardinals will have one of their key offensive players when they take on the Rams this afternoon.

Receiver Marquise Brown is active for Arizona after he was questionable for the contest with an illness.

Brown did not practice on Wednesday and was limited on Thursday and Friday.

On the other side, the Rams won’t have right guard Joe Noteboom, who is inactive with a groin injury. But the team will have linebacker Ernest Jones, who has been dealing with a knee issue.

Arizona’s inactives are safety Jalen Thompson, running back Tony Jones Jr., linebacker Jesse Luketa, offensive lineman Keith Ismael, offensive lineman Carter O’Donnell, and tight end Elijah Higgins.

Los Angeles’ inactives are Noteboom, outside linebacker Nick Hampton, defensive lineman Larell Murchison, offensive lineman Zach Thomas, and defensive lineman Desjuan Johnson.

The sixth week of the 2023 NFL season kicked off on Thursday with a win by the Chiefs and it continues with 13 more games on Sunday, which means that the 26 teams in those games submitted their final injury reports of the week on Friday.

The Cowboys and Chargers play on Monday and their final injury reports will be released on Saturday.

Ravens at Titans (in London)

Ravens EDGE Odafe Oweh (ankle) will miss his fourth straight game.

The Titans traveled to London on Thursday without WR Treylon Burks (knee), LB Luke Gifford (hamstring), and DB Elijah Molden (hamstring). DL Teair Tart (toe) and C Aaron Brewer (neck) are considered questionable

The Patriots have ruled out WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (concussion), WR Demario Douglas (concussion), G Cole Strange (knee), OL Tyrone Wheatley (knee), OL Riley Reiff (knee), and EDGE Matthew Judon (elbow). DL Christian Barmore (knee), T Trent Brown (chest), S Kyle Dugger (foot), DL Davon Godchaux (ankle), CB Jonathan Jones (ankle), G Mike Onwenu (ankle), LB Josh Uche (knee), and cornerback Shaun Wade (shoulder).

Raiders T Justin Herron (concussion) and CB Nate Hobbs (ankle) have been ruled out. CB Jakorian Bennett (shoulder) is listed as questionable.

Eagles at Jets

The Eagles ruled out CB Darius Slay (knee), DT Jalen Carter (ankle), and WR Quez Watkins (hamstring). S Sydney Brown (hamstring) and DT Marlon Tuipulotu (triceps) are considered questionable.

CB Sauce Gardner (illness) is questionable for the Jets while CB D.J. Reed (concussion), CB Brandin Echols (hamstring), and CB Justin Hardee (hamstring) were ruled out. WR/KR Xavier Gipson (ankle), DL Micheal Clemons (ankle), and FB Nick Bawden (calf) are listed as questionable.

RB Jahmyr Gibbs (hamstring) was ruled out for the Lions along with DB Brian Branch (ankle), G Jonah Jackson (ankle), RB Bam Knight (shoulder), TE James Mitchell (hamstring), and CB Emmanuel Moseley (knee). DE Josh Paschal (knee) will not be activated from injured reserve. TE Sam LaPorta (calf) and DB Khalil Dorsey (illness) are the team’s only questionable players.

WR Mike Evans (hamstring) is good to go for the Bucs, but EDGE Shaq Barrett (illness) is listed as questionable.

Cardinals at Rams

WR Marquise Brown (illness) is questionable to be in the Cardinals lineup. S Jalen Thompson (hamstring) has been ruled out while OL Dennis Daley (ankle), TE Elijah Higgins (illness), DL Jonathan Ledbetter (finger), LB Jesse Luketa (shoulder), LB Myjai Sanders (thumb), CB Garrett Williams (knee) and LB Josh Woods (ankle) join Brown in the questionable group.

The Rams listed LB Ernest Jones (knee), DT Larrell Murchison (knee), and OL Joe Noteboom (groin) as questionable.

Giants at Bills

The Giants have a long list of injuries this week. QB Daniel Jones (neck), T Andrew Thomas (hamstring), T Matt Peart (shoulder), C John Michael Schmitz (shoulder), and DE Azeez Ojulari (ankle) have all been ruled out. RB Saquon Barkley (ankle), TE Darren Waller (groin), T Evan Neal (knee), LB Micah McFadden (ankle), RB Gary Brightwell (ankle), G Shane Lemieux (groin), and DT D.J. Davidson (knee) all drew

questionable designations.

TE Dawson Knox (wrist), TE Dalton Kincaid (concussion), and CB Dane Jackson (foot) are listed as questionable for the Bills