Rams should expect to see Cardinals quarterback Josh Rosen on Sunday

The Los Angeles Rams should expect to see Cardinals rookie quarterback Josh Rosen in their Week 16 game.

Los Angeles Rams fans who were looking for every silver lining they could get in Week 16 against the Arizona Cardinals will have to look for one that doesn’t include rookie quarterback Josh Rosen sitting out Sunday against LA.

Despite a disappointing if not awful 3-11 record for the 2018 season, the internal debate in Arizona whether Rosen should be held out to protect him from two more beatings courtesy of a bad offensive line, has fallen on deaf ears where the rookie quarterback is concerned.

"“I couldn’t make it any more clear,” he said. “I’d be very frustrated if they didn’t play me, but those are decisions above me.”"

Rosen was the the Cardinals first round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. After a mediocre start to the season from veteran and former Rams quarterback Sam Bradford, team brass in Arizona made the decision to bench Bradford for Rosen, and the results were pretty typical.

Making his rookie debut with a wretched offensive line, Rosen has been sacked 35 times. His season hasn’t been one he’ll likely want to remember, either. He’s also thrown 14 interceptions against 10 touchdowns, meaning he’s completed 55.7 % of his passes averaging only 6.08 yards per attempt. Worst of all, four of his interceptions were returned for touchdowns.

Give Rosen some credit for how he wants to finish his first season. Against the Rams, he wants to continue to work on improving his own quarterback play.

"“I want to work on being a little more decisive,” he said. “I think especially when you play guys like Aaron Donald and the D-line they have, you have to be a lot more deliberate and decisive with your reads and you’ve got to have much more of a pre-snap picture.”"

The odds are long that the young quarterback can muster the kind of game to beat the 11-3 Rams. Despite Los Angeles struggling with a two game losing streak of their own, a collapse in the desert to the Cardinals would be a long shot at best.