Week 3 Game Recap: St. Louis Rams 16, Arizona Cardinals 14

What you need to know

St. Louis Rams

Torry Holt had a monster game, leading all Rams’ players in receptions and yardage, and was targeted on nearly half (14) of QB Marc Bulger’s 31 passes.

QB Marc Bulger received fantastic pass protection from his offensive line. While it should be noted that the Cardinals haven’t been very good this season in terms of QB pressure, the job done by the Saint Louis’ line cannot be dismissed.

RB Steven Jackson’s statistics don’t look spectacular at first glance, but he looked every bit the every down player fantasy owners are hoping for. He ran with authority, and consistently took several defenders down with him when he was tackled.

Arizona Cardinals

QB Kurt Warner had an afternoon to forget. He was intercepted three times (once in the end zone), and fumbled for the eighth time this season. The fumble was especially costly, as it came with time winding down and the Cardinals already in field goal range for what would have likely been a game-winning kick. The calls for rookie Matt Leinart may not be far behind.

WRs Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald are the definition of a tag-team duo. The two caught 16 of Kurt Warner’s 19 completions, yet despite all the attention, defenses still seem quite unable to do anything to stop them.

RB Edgerrin James started slowly, but as he is known to do, gathered steam as the game wore on. Even trailing by two scores, he consistently moved the pile late in the game as Arizona attempted to come back from the deficit.

What you ought to know

QB Marc Bulger, Pass: 21 - 31 - 309 - 1 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 3 - -1 - 0

This is a fairly different offense than the one Bulger has grown accustomed to in Saint Louis, but this game was more of a combo effort. The announcers continuously referred to almost a weaving of last year’s offense with this year’s, and afterwards the players appeared thankful for the alterations. Basically, Bulger took what the defense gave him. Which was quite a bit. The Cardinals decided to sell out on the run for much of the game, opting to cover Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce with a single defender each. That strategy was terrible, as the duo was consistently open on underneath routes all game long. This allowed Bulger an opportunity to pick his spots with whoever was more open.

The pressure applied by Arizona’s front very rarely bothered Bulger, as the offensive line did a terrific job of protecting him. Of course, Bulger’s game wasn’t without faults. He misfired on a deep pass to Isaac Bruce on a play that the receiver was wide open down the field. Late in the game, with the Rams simply trying to run out the clock, Bulger fumbled the exchange in his own territory. Luckily for him, Arizona QB Kurt Warner did the same thing several plays later – otherwise, Bulger would’ve likely been the goat of the game. Bulger’s stat line looks fairly solid, but it should be noted that he missed out on a touchdown to Torry Holt due to a likely blown call by the official. Torry Holt came down with the football near the back line of the end zone and appeared to be pushed out. The official ruled that Holt simply came down out of bounds, but replays showed that without the shove he likely would’ve landed safely for the score.

RB Steven Jackson, Rush: 24 - 62 - 0, Rec: 3 - 59 - 0 (3 targets)

Jackson’s rushing stats (2.6 YPC) leave a lot to be desired, but they don’t paint the total picture of the game. Every one of those 62 yards was hard-fought, and it consistently took two and three defenders to take Jackson down. He was also very involved in the receiving game, as the Rams seemed determined to find a way to get the ball to Jackson regularly. He did have a red zone rush from the eight yard line, and had another run where he steamrolled several players on his way to the five yard line, but he never came all that close to finding the end zone. The Cardinals seemed determined to stop Jackson on the ground and opted to cover WRs Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce with one defender each, and the results were not good. To top it all off, Jackson got all but one of the running back carries, so despite the seemingly poor results, HC Scott Linehan was still willing to give him the ball time after time.

WR Torry Holt, Rec: 8 - 120 - 1 (14 targets)

Early in the first quarter, Holt extended his streak to 108 games with at least one reception. Then he got started on the rest of his eight receptions. Among the highlights were a one-handed snag along the sideline on which he displayed tremendous concentration, a 43 yard reception out of the shadow of his own end zone, a nice job keeping his feet inbounds in the back of the end zone on his TD reception (a fade route), and the continuous ability to beat his man off the line and get open. About the only blemish on Holt’s afternoon was when he was punched in the back by Arizona DB Robert Griffith. The typically laid-back Holt responded with a head-butt that drew a personal foul penalty. The two fouls offset, and rather than drawing a penalty on Griffith that would’ve given the Rams the ball first and goal from the one, they had to settle for a fourth down field goal attempt. Holt also nearly had a touchdown early in the game when he went up high in the back of the end zone to haul in what appeared to be a touchdown from Marc Bulger. The official on the spot ruled that Holt came down out of bounds, but it appeared from the replays that he was pushed out by the defender.

WR Isaac Bruce, Rec: 3 - 79 - 0 (6 targets)

Bruce didn’t light up the stat sheet, but he came very close to having a monster game alongside teammate Torry Holt. QB Marc Bulger missed a wide-open Bruce downfield for what would have been a huge gain early in the second quarter. Even without that one big gainer, Bruce proved that neither of the Arizona cornerbacks could cover him man-to-man, as either he or fellow WR Torry Holt found themselves open on a consistent basis.

WR Kevin Curtis, Rec: 1 - 7 - 0 (1 targets)

In the Mike Martz offense, the third wide receiver is a terrific option in the passing game. In this offense, Kevin Curtis has seen his opportunities become very limited. This game was no exception, as he caught a short pass and was quickly tackled on his only target of the game.

TE Aaron Walker, Rec: 1 - 16 - 0 (1 targets)

Walker hauled in his only target of the game and was a non-factor aside from that one grab.

PK Jeff Wilkins 3 - 3 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 10 points

Wilkins continued his excellent campaign, nailing field goals from 26, 47, and 21 yards out, all with ease. Wilkins was able to gain a few yards (and points in some scoring systems) when the Rams were at the Arizona 22 for what would have been either a 39 yard field goal or a 40 yarder. After a bad snap cost the team 16 yards, the Rams threw two short passes to get back to the Arizona 29 yard line. Wilkins then connected on a 47 yard field goal.

STL Rush Defense

Early on, the Rams had no trouble containing RB Edgerrin James. He found the lanes closed up rather quickly (whatever lanes there were), and he had no ability to bounce anything to the outside or cut it back in for any type of gains. But late in the fourth quarter, one got the sense that the Rams defense was beginning to wear down a bit. They allowed 33 of his 94 yards during the final frame, as well as the six yard touchdown run.

STL Pass Defense

Several times, the Rams were given gifts that came courtesy of Arizona QB Kurt Warner. The first Warner interception came off a deflection between the receiver and defender, and was softly cradled in by O.J. Atogwe. Later, Warner threw a pass seemingly right into the hands of Dexter Coakley in the end zone. There wasn’t an Arizona receiver within five yards of the football, and there was minimal pressure on Warner at the time. Aside from the gifts, the Rams did a decent job of at least containing the Arizona passing game. WR Anquan Boldin proved to be too much to handle at times, and they blew the coverage on the long Bryant Johnson reception, but aside from that nothing stood out as terrible. They did get good pressure on Kurt Warner, and even though they only managed one sack, he was constantly harassed and hurried all game long. LB Will Witherspoon briefly left the game early on with a neck stinger after a violent collision with WR Anquan Boldin, but Witherspoon returned to the game soon after.

QB Kurt Warner, Pass: 19 - 28 - 256 - 1 TD / 3 INT, Rush: 3 - 10 - 0

Warner had a very forgettable day. He endured some early game bad luck when his two star receivers, Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald, uncharacteristically dropped at least three catchable passes between them. After a brief positive sign, a 12 yard touchdown pass to Larry Fitzgerald, things only got worse for Warner after that. He threw a terrible interception over the middle late in the first half. Granted, the ball was deflected before being picked but it was still a very poor decision by Warner. In the third quarter, he made a terrible read over the middle, throwing a costly interception into the waiting arms of Dexter Coakley two yards deep in the end zone. The curious part was that no Arizona receiver was in the camera’s sight, and the commentators suggested that Warner may have had a flashback to his days as a Ram and tried throwing the pass to Coakley. While that’s unreasonable to believe, it certainly appeared to be the case on the play.

Warner faced constant pressure all game long, especially in the fourth quarter, and was getting hit quite a bit. He strangely alternated between demonstrating nice footwork and decent elusiveness to just plain not seeing defenders coming right at him. Perhaps an early hit by LB Will Witherspoon dazed Warner just enough to throw him off his game, though he rejected that notion after the game. Amazingly, he still had his team positioned for a win late in the fourth quarter. Trailing 16-14 with the ball on the Saint Louis 18 yard line and 1:46 left to play, Warner inexplicably mishandled the snap from center. Witherspoon pounced on the football, in essence ending the game. Warner was seen on the sidelines shouting at his center Alex Stepanovich, but after the game Warner took full responsibility for the fumble saying the snap was good. After the game, HC Denny Green said he was as angry as he’s been since joining Arizona. Whether that means Warner’s job security is on the line remains to be seen, but the obligatory cut-away shots of Matt Leinart were shown throughout the fourth quarter as Warner was turning the ball over. Warner just missed a second touchdown pass early in the third quarter, but Anquan Boldin was tackled at the three yard line. Warner threw the Coakley interception three plays later.

RB Edgerrin James, Rush: 24 - 94 - 1, Rec: 1 - 5 - 0 (1 targets)

James posted very solid statistics on a day that found running room scarce. He had just 17 carries for 61 yards through three quarters, but with his team trailing in the fourth he still saw enough touches to add seven more carries for 33 yards and a score. He showed nice open-field running in the early going, and strength when hitting the hole. Additionally, he generally wore down the Saint Louis defense all game long until he was finally able to finish strong. He was picking up the tough yards late in the contest as Arizona tried getting into field goal range. While James did find the end zone late in the game, he wasn’t as fortunate early on, getting stuffed from the two yard line on first down and again from the one yard line on second down. Warner was intercepted in the end zone on the subsequent play. James was credited with three additional rushing yards after being hit for a loss on a play that was negated due to an off-sides penalty on the Rams.

RB Marcel Shipp, Rec: 1 - 3 - 0 (1 targets)

Shipp was a non-factor in the game, as Edgerrin James got every RB carry there was to get.

WR Anquan Boldin, Rec: 10 - 129 - 0 (12 targets)

Boldin was the big threat downfield in this game, leading both teams in receptions and yards. He dropped his first target of the game for what would have been a 12 yard pickup. On his next reception, he came over the middle and shook off the defender easily. After that, Boldin didn’t make another mistake really. He made a nice one-handed snag to pick up a first down along the sideline, and was consistently Warner’s go-to guy on the underneath routes when the team needed a big first down. Boldin failed to find the end zone, but he came close after being taken down at the Saint Louis three yard line.

WR Larry Fitzgerald, Rec: 6 - 65 - 1 (11 targets)

Fitzgerald uncharacteristically dropped several catchable balls early in the contest. Granted, they would have been very nice catches, but they were passes that he normally hauls in. By our count, there were at least three in the first quarter alone that he could have/should have made. One of the drops could very well have gone for a 54 yard touchdown pass, but the ball tipped off his fingertips. He did somewhat make up for that with a 12 yard touchdown reception on their next possession. Aside from the early issues, Fitzgerald enjoyed a very solid game. He teamed with WR Anquan Boldin to form an almost uncoverable tandem that was productive well into the fourth quarter. Fitzgerald’s most spectacular play came early in the fourth quarter when he reached out and picked an errant Kurt Warner pass away from the defender to pick up a key first down at the time.

WR Bryant Johnson, Rush: 1 - -3 - 0, Rec: 1 - 54 - 0 (2 targets)

Johnson’s targets are few and far between due to the behemoth receivers ahead of him, but he did make the most of his opportunities. He took what was a short pass underneath and turned it upfield for a 54 yard gain, getting great downfield blocking from his fellow receivers on the play.

TE Leonard Pope (1 targets)

The only time Pope was targeted, the ball was intercepted in the end zone by Dexter Coakley. Even assigning that target to Pope is very questionable, as there were truly no Arizona receivers anywhere in the area of the football.

PK Neil Rackers 0 - 0 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 2 points

Due to the peculiar ending of the game, Rackers did not get the opportunity to line up and attempt what would have been a game winning (and league record) 77 yard field goal, though it’s pretty telling to note that HC Denny Green considered that as a viable option to score at the time. The Rams punted the ball away on fourth down, and Troy Walters called for a fair catch at the Arizona 33. The Cardinals were off-sides on the play and it was declined by Saint Louis, but since the game cannot end on a defensive penalty, it was determined that Arizona would have one shot at a free kick from the dead-ball spot. Upon learning of this, Rams’ HC Scott Linehan opted to accept the off-sides penalty. That gave the ball back to the Rams on fourth down with no time remaining on the clock. QB Marc Bulger stepped back and knelt down to end the contest.

ARI Rush Defense

It appeared as if Arizona didn’t want to get beaten on the ground, and they often committed several extra players towards stopping the Saint Louis ground attack. It worked, to a degree. They did slow RB Steven Jackson and held him to under three yards per carry, but it came at the expense of the pass defense. By selling out on the run, the defensive backs were often exposed in single coverage on All-Pros Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce, and the result was 300+ yards through the air.

ARI Pass Defense

This is where the game was lost for the Cardinals. The defensive front showed no ability to pressure QB Marc Bulger whatsoever, and the defensive backs were falling over themselves trying to keep up with WRs Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce. It didn’t matter which player was covered by which DB; the results were always the same – bad. Matt Ware in particular was the victim of several double moves by Torry Holt that had him looking lost at times. The amount of cushion given to Holt and Bruce by the DBs was astounding, and the Rams took advantage by constantly throwing short routes underneath for first down after first down. The stat line could’ve looked even worse, but Holt had a TD taken away by a poor call by an official who ruled him out of bounds when it certainly appeared he had been pushed out. CB Antrel Rolle briefly left the game after a blow to the head, but returned soon thereafter. At one point, Robert Griffith made a fine play knocking a pass away from Holt in the end zone, and got up and celebrated by punching Holt in the back. It could have been unintentional, but it led to a skirmish on the field during which Holt retaliated by head-butting Griffith.