Big Red Blog: Another week, another loss

The Cardinals’ 2012 campaign fell to a new low on Sunday following a seventh consecutive loss at the hands of the St. Louis Rams.

Another week, another loss

Posted by Brad Wilbricht
Tuesday, November 27 - 4:00 PM

Arizona's 2012 campaign fell to a new low on Sunday, following a 31-17 home loss to the Rams. The Cardinals have now dropped seven straight outings, marking the first time in NFL history that a team has lost that many games after starting the year 4-0.

The Cardinals were done in by turnovers as the team committed four on the afternoon – all courtesy of rookie QB Ryan Lindley. Lindley tossed four interceptions, two which were returned for touchdowns by Rams CB Janoris Jenkins. Despite outgaining St. Louis in total yardage (375-367), first downs (24-15) and time of possession (31:51-28:09), Arizona was unable to overcome the turnovers.

While Lindley’s inexperience was exploited by an average Rams defense, he did show some promise in his first career start. Lindley completed 31-of-52 passes for 312 yards as the Cardinals relied on him almost exclusively in the second half.

Lindley and the Arizona offense did get a brief boost from the return of RB Beanie Wells. Wells returned from injury and rushed for two touchdowns in the first half. Wells’ overall production, however, was limited to just 48 yards on 17 carries.

One of the few positives from Sunday’s loss was Lindley's ability to distribute the ball to his receivers. WR Andre Roberts led the Cardinals with 92 yards on nine catches while TE Rob Housler chipped in with eight grabs for 82 yards. Although All-Pro wideout Larry Fitzgerald was held to just three catches for 31 yards, Lindley connected with eight different receivers – demonstrating a knack to see the field.

Meanwhile, St Louis’ offense didn’t have to do near as much thanks to the two defensive scores from Jenkins. QB Sam Bradford only attempted 17 passes, connecting on eight occasions for 205 yards. Bradford hooked up on a pair of 37-yard touchdown passes to WE Chris Givens and TE Lance Kendricks.

The resurgent Steven Jackson led the Rams running game with 139 yards on 24 carries as he and rookie Daryl Richardson helped run out the clock on the Cardinals in the second half.

Now with a record of 4-7, Arizona’s season is essentially over as San Francisco once again has a stranglehold of the NFC West. The Cardinals will be forced to start looking forward to next year earlier than they’d like for a third consecutive season.

---

Questions or comments? Contact Brad Wilbricht at

---

blog comments powered by Disqus

---

Questions or comments? Contact Brad Wilbricht at

---

blog comments powered by Disqus