Whats up, #Mobsquad? Welcome to this week’s edition of Talking Touchdowsn. What an AWESOME win by the guys on Sunday over Jacksonville. Now, the Rams are crossing the Pond for a big divisional rivalry game against the Cardinals and here’s a quick preview.

First up, the Rams offense seemed to improve quite a bit this week over a very talented Jaguars defense. Goff finished the game going 11 of 21 for 124 yards and one touchdown. While he didn’t match the yardage, he had the past couple of games, he was able to be mobile in the pocket and make smarter decisions with the football which allowed him to connect better with the receivers. We knew this was going to be a tough one for Goff and squad to pull off, as the Jags defense picked off Big Ben five times the week prior. Goff walked away with zero interceptions!! The chemistry between the O-line this week allowed Goff to really get comfortable spending some time getting his eyes down the field, and it greatly helped this offense improve.

Another star on the offense this week was Pharoh Cooper. He had a HUGE 103 yard kickoff return to open up the game with a Rams’ touchdown. Having success on special teams like this is crucial for winning tough games like this one over Jacksonville. Todd Gurley was able to get things going again on Sunday vs the Jags as he rushed for 116 yards on 23 carries. If the Rams can continue to improve like they did from Week 6 to Week 7, they will have great success moving forward.

On the other side of the ball, the Rams defense had their work cut out for them in Leonard Fournette. The defense struggled as they opened the game, unable to contain Fournette as he rushed for 75 yards for his sixth rushing touchdown of the season. But in the second half, the Rams’ defense was able to hold the Jags to just one field goal that was really a result of unnecessary penalties.

Los Angeles Rams vs. Arizona Cardinals

Now, looking to this week, as the Rams head to London Town to take on the Cardinals. Let me say this. The Rams are 3-0 on the road. Yes, I know “technically” this is a Rams home game but the Rams are very much on the road which might work in their favor.

The Rams and Cardinals are very comparable when it comes to the offense of both teams. The bird gang is led by veteran quarterback Carson Palmer who is coming to the game with 1856 yards and nine touchdowns on the season. The Rams’ defense will definitely have its work cut out for it as they try to bring pressure to Carson Palmer and attempt to contain veteran wideout Larry Fitzgerald. Before last week, I would say the Rams defense main job would be to control the Cards’ passing game, as that was really their only option on offense. But, the bird gang got the ultimate present in Adrian Peterson who had his BEST game since 2015 on Sunday. He rushed for 134 yards on 26 carries and two touchdowns. With the Cardinals offense looking completely different with the addition of AP, the Rams’ defense will need to be at the top of their game.

Now, the Cardinal defense. In a game where Buccaneers’ QB Jameis Winston went down with injury, the Cards led 31-6 after three quarters and seemingly let their foot off the gas far too early, because the Bucs were able to score 27 fourth quarter points…making it a much closer game than it should have been. Arizona’s defense has been incredibly consistent in recent years, but has struggled so far this season, ranking 26th in passing defense, ninth in rushing defense and give up a 28th worst 26.3 points per game.

How does this affect the Rams? For starters, as bad as the Cardinals defense has been, they have been formidable against the run…meaning it could be difficult for the Rams to get Gurley going on the ground as much as they have so far this season, which could put more pressure on Goff to move the ball through the air. The Rams have been most successful on offense when they have a balanced run/pass attack, so I think it would be smart for Sean McVay to stick to the current script and lean on Gurley and the offensive line to establish the run game first in order to take some pressure off Goff. If they can establish a rushing attack, it may open up the play action pass allowing Goff to take more deep shots and get the ball into the hands of their play makers on the outside.

Game Prediction

I am absolutely giving the Rams the W. This would be a good divisional win for the Rams and I think they can definitely get it done even across the pond! Sorry Cardinals Fangirl!

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