Early And Often – The Rams didn’t jump on the Cards right out of the gate, but they did manage to get a lead and Arizona did roll over. The Cardinals have a ton of problems right now, none more prevalent than at the quarterback position. Still, the coaching staff over there made the move to bench Derek Anderson after we got up, and the rest of the team might as well have joined him on the sidelines.

That’s Fine – I don’t think much really needs to be said here. Anderson was 7-for-20 for 93 yards and a pick when he got benched, and the Rams were really in his face all day. The fact of the matter is, he isn’t very good. When Max Hall came in, the Rams really pinned their ears back and came after him, and it resulted in him being sidelined with a shoulder injury.

Running Men – This one I got wrong, because the Cards did actually manage to run the ball effectively. Tim Hightower picked up 81 yards on 15 carries, and Beanie Wells got another 24 on just three carries. They played from behind so they had to abandon the run in the second half, but they did show the ability. The Rams defense will have to be better against the run in the next few weeks if they are going to pick up victories.

Keeping Pace – This was a big one for the Rams, and they came through. I know it wasn’t against a great team, but they went on the road against a divisional opponent and came away with the win. The next step is finding a way to beat a team that’s better than us. If we do that, we’ll be in the playoffs this season.

Injury Report: Now, on to the bad news. Linebacker Na’il Diggs is going to miss the rest of the season with a torn pectoral muscle. Diggs will have surgery on the area, so he is done. I’m going to take a look in tomorrow’s post at possible replacements for Diggs on the strong side, but this one hurts. Sam Bradford is dealing with a sore ankle, but he is expected to be fine for Wednesday’s practice. Ron Bartell is day-to-day after the shoulder stinger, as is Craig Dahl with a knee. Chris Chamberlain’s X-rays came back negative on his hand but is expected to practice this week, as is Jason Smith, who suffered a sprained ankle.

It wasn’t a work of art, but the Rams did more than enough to pull out the win in Arizona by a score of 19-6 on Sunday. I thought the defense played well, although I think it’s pretty obvious that the joke that is the quarterback position in Arizona had something to do with that. Derek Anderson was awful, Max Hall is even worse, and a rookie from Fordham is their best option right now. For what it’s worth, I have been saying for a few weeks that John Skelton is the most talented quarterback on their roster, and if I was running that team, he would be starting under center the rest of the season.

Offensively, I liked that the team didn’t give up on Steven Jackson, and he ended up having a very nice day. The team is at their best when he is touching the ball consistently, and he got plenty of work today. It’s still a little disappointing that the team had to settle for field goals on numerous drives, but they got away with it today. With the next two games against quality opponents, they won’t be so lucky. Field goals probably won’t be enough to beat the Saints or the Chiefs, so we need to find a way to capitalize on those scoring opportunities.

As far as the injury report goes, we have some guys a bit banged up. Chris Chamberlain injured his hand, and he is going for X-rays. Billy Bajema has a sore knee but should be fine, and Jason Smith is dealing with an ankle. Ron Bartell also suffered a stinger on his shoulder. I will update their conditions later in the week.

The more I think about the Rams-Cards matchup on Sunday, the more it makes me nervous. I think the Rams are the better team right now, but something about this Cardinals team has me worried. Let’s take a look at my keys to the game, and this week more than ever, I think it’s imperative that the Rams achieve these keys if they are going to win.

Early And Often – The number one key to this game is for the Rams to jump all over the Cards early in this game. Arizona has talent, but they have shown over the last few weeks that they will roll over if you hit them in the mouth early. The worst thing the Rams can do is let the Cardinals hang around as this game moves to the fourth quarter. If we come out strong, I think it will be a good day.

That’s Fine – Going along with the first point, the Rams have to put pressure on Arizona quarterback Derek Anderson early in the game. Anderson has weapons and is capable of beating you if you let him get comfortable, so the Rams need to use the blitz effectively to keep him on his heels. Much like the rest of the team, I think he will wilt if we hit him early, but we have to have to  make sure we do it.
Running Men – I get the feeling that the Cardinals think they can run the ball effectively against the Rams, and it wouldn’t surprise me if they make it a point to hammer it down our throat. I think we can keep their backs bottled up, but if we do struggle stopping the run, it could be bad news. I know their receivers are very good, but I’ll take my chances with Anderson throwing the ball over their backs running it on a consistent basis.

Keeping Pace – It seems like every time the Rams give us a reason to be excited, they can’t follow up the next week. We are in the thick of this race, and you have to think that Seattle is going to beat Carolina. A loss here would be devastating in my opinion, so the team need to take that next step and prove they are ready to be a major player in this division.

The Cardinals are reeling right now, and we need to make sure they stay that way. As far as my prediction goes, although I do have a bad feeling about this one, I’m going to give the Rams the edge. Let’s go with a 27-20 Rams win.