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Fourth-quarter meltdown dooms Rams
• BY JIM THOMAS
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_990b5bec-6811-5ca8-84b0-77fdde989aaa.html
GLENDALE, Ariz. • The Rams were teetering on the edge of another upset victory, leading Arizona 14-10 in the fourth quarter, and having knocked quarterback Carson Palmer out of the game with a knee injury.
But just when it looked like the team was on to something big — namely a sweep of the NFC West over a four-game stretch — the bottom fell out for the Rams in a big way. First came a 48-yard lightning bolt to speedy John Brown on just the fourth play of the game by replacement QB Drew Stanton.
That gave Arizona a 17-14 lead, but there was still plenty of time for the Rams to come back — 7 minutes, 40 seconds.
But the Cardinals don't lose many games in the fourth quarter, and they didn't this Sunday at University of Phoenix Stadium as the Rams melted away right before our eyes. First came a Pick 6 by Arizona's Patrick Peterson on a second-and-9 from the St. Louis 26. The high but catchable throw went off the hands of Kenny Britt and into the arms of Peterson. It was the fourth interception return for a touchdown thrown by Davis this season.
That made it 24-14 Arizona with just over 5 minutes to play. On the Rams' next possession, Davis lost a sack fumble on first-and-10 from the St. Louis 22. The loose ball was picked up Antonio Cromartie, who returned it for another TD. That made it 31-17 Arizona, and that was that.
While the Rams lost their poise down the stretch, the Cardinals closed out yet another game. It was the fourth game won by the Big Red this season, when trailing entering the fourth quarter. The Cardinals (8-1) have now outscored the opposition 91-34 in the fourth quarter.
For three quarters, things went well for the Rams. Tight end Jared Cook couldn't have picked a better time for his first touchdown of the season. Running a seam route on the last play before the 2-minute warning of the first half, Cook got behind an Arizona linebacker and hauled in a 59-yard touchdown pass to give the Rams a 14-10 halftime lead.
The Rams had only 41 yards passing before that play, with quarterback Austin Davis bugged just enough by the blitzing Big Red to make things sticky in the pocket.
The Rams scored first Sunday, driving 62 yards for a touchdown on their third offensive series of the game. Tavon Austin, who has struggled getting going this season, was featured on that drive. He picked up 17 yards on a quick screen, eluding a couple of tacklers near the line of scrimmage, to get the Rams into Arizona territory for the first time.
Three runs by Tre Mason, who started again on Sunday, advanced the ball into the red zone. After a neutral zone infraction by Arizona, Austin gained 10 yards on an end around, giving the Rams a first down at the Arizona 3. On the next play, Benny Cunningham ran up the middle for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead with 4:35 to play in the opening quarter.
It was Cunningham's four TD of the season, tying for the team lead.
But most of the rest of the half belonged to the Big Red, who scored the game's next 10 points for a 10-7 lead. It didn't help that Rams nickel back Lamarcus Joyner suffered a groin injury early in the second quarter _ and was done for the day.
That left the Rams with only three healthy corners: E.J. Gaines, Trumaine Johnson, and Janoris Jenkins. And for Jenkins it was his first game back since suffering a knee injury Oct. 19 against Seattle.
Palmer carved up the Rams' defense with intermediate passes on the drive, going five-for-five, including four for first downs. Andre Ellington's 3-yard TD tied the game at 7-7, 3½ minutes into the second quarter.
After a 3-and-out by the Rams, the Cardinals drove 36 yards for a Chandler Catanzaro field goal giving the Big Red a 10-7 lead. It was the 17th consecutive successful field goal by Catanzaro, a rookie from Clemson.
But before the half ended, Davis' strike to Cook gave the Rams a 14-10 lead at the intermission. If regular-season games end at halftime, the Rams would be 5-3-1. But they don't, and after a fourth-quarter meltdown, the Rams now stand 3-6.
Here are the in-game updates posted by football writer Joe Lyons of the Post-Dispatch:
The Arizona Cardinals used their fourth-quarter magic to post a 31-14 victory over the visiting Rams on Sunday.
The Cardinals, who improved their league-best record to 8-1, came up with 21 fourth-quarter points, including two touchdowns on defensive returns, to overcome a 14-10 deficit.
This season, Arizona has outscored its opponents 91-34 in the fourth quarter.
The Rams, coming off a dramatic 13-10 road win over San Francisco, fell to 3-6. They'll host the powerful Denver Broncos Sunday at the Edward Jones Dome.
With the Cardinals driving early in the fourth quarter, quarterback Carson Palmer went down with an apparent knee injury on a Mark Barron sack. Earlier this season, Palmer sat out three games with a nerve injury in his throwing shoulder.
Palmer was carted off to the Arizona locker room.
On the next play, rookie kicker Chandler Catanzaro went wide right on a 53-yard field goal try with 11:13 left in the game. It was the first miss of his professional career and gave the Rams possession at their own 43. Unfortunately, they couldn't move the ball and were forced to punt.
Drew Stanton, who led Arizona to wins over the New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers earlier this season, takes over for Palmer.
It took Stanton just four plays to cover 89 yards and put the Cardinals back on top 17-14 with a 48-yard bomb to rookie John Brown, who made a brilliant diving catch at the goal line with 7:40 to play.
Stanton completed three of three passes for 89 yards on the drive.
A play after being called for an illegal contact _ his league-leading 11th flag of the season _ Arizona cornerback Patrick Peterson picked up his first interception of the season when Austin Davis tried to force a pass intended for Chris Givens.
The Cardinals, who lead the league with 10 fourth-quarter takeaways, take over at their own 46-yard line. But the Rams' defense stepped up and forced a punt with about 6 ½ minutes to play.
But again, the Arizona defense responded. On a second-and-nine play, a Davis' pass went off the hands of Kenny Britt and Peterson made the play of the day. After tipping the ball to himself, Peterson collected and returned it 30 yards for a touchdown to stretch the Arizona lead to 24-14 with 5:13 to play in the game.
The Arizona defense struck again with 3:58 to play when the ball came free when Cardinals' rookie Kareem Martin sacked Austin Davis and Antonio Cromartie scooped up the football and returned it 14 yards for a touchdown to make it 31-14.
RAMS UP 14-10 WITH A QUARTER TO PLAY
Just when it appeared the Cardinals were driving toward a score, the Rams' Alec Ogletree stepped in front of an Arizona receiver in the middle of the field near the 10-yard line and picked off a Carson Palmer pass and returned it to the Arizona 45.
It was the first turnover of the game and just the third of the season for Palmer.
On first down, Austin Davis hooked up with tight end Jared Cook for a 25-yard gain, but Lance Kendricks is called for an illegal block downfield _ a coach the Rams did not agree with _ that took 15 yards off the play.
Three plays later, a Calais Campbell sack took the Rams out of field goal range and forced a punt.
RAMS LEAD 14-10 AT HALFTIME
The Cardinals pulled even at 7 on a 3-yard scoring run by Andre Ellington at the 11:39 mark of the second quarter. Carson Palmer completed all five of his passes on the eight-play, 66-yard drive. On second-and-nine from the Rams 17, Rams rookie defensive back Lamarcus Joyner was shaken up with a groin injury fter bouncing off Palmer on a blitz.
Arizona went up 10-7 with 4:52 to play before halftime, thanks to a 43-yard field goal from rookie Chandler Catanzaro, a rookie from Clemson who has converted all 17 of his kicks this season. The field goal wrapped up an 11-play, 36-yard drive that featured a pair of Palmer 14-yard passes to future Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald.
The Rams came right back, moving 80 yards on just five plays to regain the lead at 14-10 on a 59-yard touchdown pass from Austin Davis to Jared Cook. With Cook matched up with a rookie defensive back, Davis threw a perfectly lofted pass and Cook did the rest for his first touchdown of the season with 1:50 to play before halftime.
Following the score, the Rams' Chris Givens was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct during the TD celebration. It pushed the kickoff back to the Rams' 20.
Some halftime numbers....
• Austin Davis has completed 8 of 10 passes for 110 yards, with a 59-yards scoring strike to tight end Jared Cook.
• Tre Mason has rushed nine times for 35 yards.
• Safety T.J. McDonald has been all over the field. According to press box stats, he has six tackles and a sack.
• Carson Palmer has complete 13 of 20 for 128 yards. Larry Fitzgerald has six of those catches for 72 yards. The Rams have limited Andre Ellington to nine yards on nine carries.
RAMS UP 7-0 AFTER A QUARTER
The Rams took the lead with 4:35 to play in the first quarter as Benny Cunningham powered his way into the end zone from 3 yards out to make it 7-0. It was Cunningham's fourth touchdown of the season, tying him with Lance Kendricks for the team lead.
Key plays on the drive included a 16-yard run from rookie Tre Mason and a pair of big plays from second-year wideout Tavon Austin _ an exciting 18-yard gain on a flanker screen and a 10-yarder on an end around.
The Rams defense seems to have picked up right where it left off after pitching a second-half shutout in last week's 13-10 road victory over the San Francisco 49ers. The Cardinals' first drive was slowed by a Robert Quinn sack and safety T.J. McDonald came up with a big stop in the backfield on running back Andre Ellington to stop Arizona on its second drive.
CORNERBACK JENKINS ACTIVE FOR CARDS
GLENDALE, Ariz. • After missing the past two games with a knee injury, Rams cornerback Janoris Jenkins is active for today's game with Arizona. Whether he starts or even plays remains to be seen.
If Jenkins isn't of much help, the Rams will be shorthanded at cornerback with only Trumaine Johnson, E.J. Gaines, and Lamarcus Joyner available. The team's fifth corner, Marcus Roberson, is on the pregame inactive list with an ankle injury.
Other Rams inactives besides Roberson: S Maurice Alexander, RB Trey Watts, LB Daren Bates (groin), OG Brandon Washington, TE Alex Bayer, and DE Ethan Westbrooks. Watts, Roberson, and Bates all played last week. That trio was replaced on today's active list by Jenkins, LB Korey Toomer, and S Cody Davis.
Davis had concussion symptoms against Kansas City two weeks ago, and didn't play last week in San Francisco. For Toomer, who was signed to the practice squad Oct. 21 and then promoted to the active roster Oct. 28, this marks his first game for the Rams.
There were no surprises on Arizona's inactive list, which included: QB Logan Thomas, RB Stepfan Taylor, LB Desmond Bishop, LB Thomas Keiser, LB Glenn Carson, NT Alameda Ta'amu, and TE Darren Fells.
(Jim Thomas of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.)