Six field goals, no touchdowns: Cardinals stun the Rams 18-16
Chad Ryland went 6-for-6 to end Arizona's four-game skid and an eight-game division skid, while the defense held the NFL's No. 1 offense to 286 yards. Both teams are 2-4.
- The Cardinals beat the Rams 18-16 in Los Angeles without scoring a touchdown — Chad Ryland went 6-for-6, including a 43-yarder on the final play. It is only the second road win without a touchdown in franchise history. m:…3206 m:…5722
- Arizona had five red-zone trips and settled for field goals every time; Jacoby Brissett went 24 of 35 for 218 yards, and Bam Knight ran for 80 yards on 15 carries with Jeremiyah Love out. m:…3206 m:…5722
- The Rams, the NFL's No. 1 offense, were held to 286 total yards and under 30 points for the first time since Week 1. Josh Sweat had a team-high four pressures and a sack; Budda Baker played through a groin issue with six tackles, a sack, two QB hits and two tackles for loss. m:…3386 m:…3206 m:…5722
- Sweat sacked Matthew Stafford on the two-point conversion attempt and forced a fumble after Colby Parkinson's 5-yard touchdown had made it a one-point game with under a minute left. m:…5722 m:…3206
- The win snapped a four-game losing streak and an eight-game division skid; both teams sit at 2-4. Arizona hosts the Broncos next Saturday. m:…3386 m:…5722
Six kicks, zero touchdowns
Arizona won in Los Angeles with a recipe no coach draws up: six field goals, no touchdowns. Chad Ryland went 6-for-6, and his 43-yarder on the final play gave the Cardinals an 18-16 win over the Rams. It was only the second road win without a touchdown in franchise history, per the Cardinals' own feed. m:…5722 m:…3206
The offense had its chances and wasted them: five trips to the red zone, five times settling for three points. Quarterback Jacoby Brissett went 24 of 35 for 218 yards and moved the ball between the 20s, while Bam Knight did the running-back work with 80 yards on 15 carries as Jeremiyah Love sat out. But the Rams' defense forced a field goal on every red-zone trip, per the Rams' feed — and first-year head coach Mike LaFleur said afterward the team can be better in the red zone. The Cardinals ran the ball 35 times in the game. m:…3206 m:…5722 m:…8067 m:…3386
Sweat and Baker broke the Rams' offense
What won the game was the defense. The Rams arrived as the NFL's No. 1 offense and left with 286 total yards — held under 30 points for the first time since Week 1. Josh Sweat was credited with a team-high four pressures and a sack, and Budda Baker played through a groin issue to post six tackles, a sack, two quarterback hits and two tackles for loss, per the Cardinals' feeds. Sweat himself put it this way: "There ain't no telling what I can do if we are actually in the game," said Sweat. The Cardinals were also without Walter Nolen III for part of the fourth quarter after he injured his ankle. m:…3386 m:…3206 m:…5722
The decisive sequence came late. With under a minute left, Stafford drove the Rams 86 yards in just over two minutes — Puka Nacua caught 59 of his 80 receiving yards on that march — and Colby Parkinson's 5-yard touchdown made it a one-point game. But Sweat sacked Stafford on the two-point conversion attempt and forced a fumble, keeping it 16-15, and Arizona still had time: Jalen Brooks hauled in a 21-yard catch on the game-winning drive to set up Ryland's walk-off kick. m:…8067 m:…3206 m:…5722
Mack Wilson led the Cardinals with nine tackles, and Cody Simon forced a fumble that Denzel Burke recovered. Arizona also became the second team, joining the 2022 Seahawks, to beat both the Chargers and the Rams at SoFi Stadium in the same season. Trey McBride added seven receptions for 53 yards. m:…3386 m:…3206
Two teams at 2-4
The win snapped a four-game losing streak and an eight-game skid in division play, and left both teams at 2-4. Arizona's locker room show described a game plan of simulated pressures and varied looks to confuse the league's top offense, and LaFleur said his defensive coordinator had an excellent game. The Cardinals are 1-2 in the division; the Rams fell to 0-2. m:…3386 m:…5722
On the Rams' side, head coach Sean McVay pointed to "unforced errors" as the main downfall and said the collective effort was "not good enough." Stafford and Puka Nacua took personal accountability for the loss. Arizona hosts the Denver Broncos next Saturday. m:…8067 m:…5722
What is still unresolved
- Whether Arizona's red-zone offense — five trips, zero touchdowns — improves with a full week of preparation.
- Whether the Rams' offense rebounds or the loss to a division rival marks a real slide.
- Jeremiyah Love's return timeline after sitting out with the Cardinals going with Knight and Allgeier.
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