Matthew Stafford and the Rams smell blood in the water against a Cardinals defense in free fall
The PlaybookThe Arizona Cardinals are headed to Hollywood this week and judging by their last four games, somebody forgot to pack the defense. Then again, the Los Angeles Rams might want to check their own luggage at baggage claim because their special teams unit might be better off in another country.Less than a week after a shocking 37-34 overtime loss to the Buffalo Bills that bordered on criminal negligence, Sean McVay and the Rams (2-3) return to the house that Stan Kroenke built looking to salvage their season against a Cardinals (1-4) team that has lost four straight games.For the Cardinals, another loss might have fans dreaming at night about Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and the upcoming 2027 NFL Draft. For the Rams, another defeat and it’s time to sound the alarm on a season that once had such high Super Bowl aspirations before it began. The Rams had Buffalo on the ropes Monday night and stood on the precipice of delivering the knockout blow.Matthew Stafford was picking apart the Bills’ secondary like it was string cheese, throwing for 383 yards and three touchdowns with a 111 passer rating.
Los Angeles scored on all five red zone possessions, put up 34 points and it should have been more. Instead of scoring the game-winning touchdown in overtime and walking off into the sunset with a winning record, McVay got conservative, settling for a 48-yard field goal and then watched another special teams disaster unfold right in front of his eyes when Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau blocked the potential game-winner. McVay admitted afterward that he might have overthought the situation.That’s putting it kindly.
When your quarterback is dropping dimes and looking every bit like the reigning NFL MVP and your opponent is barely hanging on for dear life, you don’t take the ball out his hands and trust the most unreliable unit in all of football. The fallout from the gut-wrenching loss was immediate.Harrison Mevis, affectionately known as th...