Cardinals look to even score from early stumble against Rams

ST. LOUIS -- In the first meeting between the Cardinals and Rams, Nick Foles threw three touchdown passes, two of them to Tavon Austin, and Todd Gurley rushed for 141 yards.

Since then, the Rams' offense has gone south.

The Cardinals haven't forgotten that stumble against an NFC West rival. They aim to keep their surge going, and keep the Rams down.

The Cardinals (9-2) have nine wins in the first 11 games in consecutive seasons for the first time in franchise history. They've won six of seven overall since losing 24-22 to St. Louis at home in Week 4.

The Rams (4-7) are accustomed by now to complaints about questionable play from opponents, including the Vikings and Ravens, and say that they play to the whistle. Facing anybody twice a season can bring up hard feelings.

"We know they have an unbelievable offense and they're going to come in here probably thinking they can throw it all around, and nobody is going to give us a chance to win, and that's fine," middle linebacker James Laurinaitis said.

What's not fine is the Rams' offense, ranked 31st overall and last in passing. For the second straight game they have a question at quarterback, with neither option particularly appealing.

Coach Jeff Fisher has ruled out Case Keenum (concussion) for the second straight week, saying if he's cleared from a concussion on Friday he would be the backup. Foles flubbed a second chance at the starting job against the Bengals by throwing three interceptions, one returned for a TD.

Since the first Arizona game, Foles has thrown two TD passes with eight interceptions. Austin has two TD catches and two rushing TDs, and Gurley has been stifled.

Palmer-Fitzgerald Connection

Carson Palmer has 27 touchdown passes and a passer rating of 105.9 -- both second-best in the NFL behind only Tom Brady. He's three TD passes shy of Kurt Warner's franchise record set in 2008. Larry Fitzgerald has 16 TD receptions against St. Louis, most among active players against a single team in the regular season. He's also 8 yards shy of a seventh career 1,000-yard season.

They're the two top reasons the Cardinals have the No. 1 offense in the NFL.

Gurley grounded

The 10th overall pick was the first running back taken in the first round in three years and was as advertised in his first pro start. He's among the league leaders with 794 yards rushing to go with a 4.8-yard average. But after becoming the first player to start his career with four 125-yard games -- his four-game total of 566 yards is the most in the Super Bowl era -- he hasn't hit double figures since. Last week he was held to 19 yards on just nine carries with the Rams in catch-up mode much of the game and during the four-game stretch is averaging 55 yards and 3.1 yards per carry. The Rams' decision to go young on the offensive line has made the going tough, especially after injuries to rookies Todd Havenstein and Jamon Brown.

David Johnson's time

Rookie David Johnson, a third-round pick, figures to get a greatly expanded role with Arizona's top two running backs injured. Chris Johnson is on injured reserve/designated for return with a leg injury, eligible to return should the Cardinals reach the Super Bowl, and Andre Ellington (turf toe) is likely out this week. In the first meeting, Johnson fumbled a kickoff return to set up a St. Louis touchdown, but he also caught a late touchdown pass.

Two Ds

For much of the season defense carried the load for the Rams, but they've allowed 31 points by the Bengals and 37 by the Bears in the past three weeks. They'll be facing a team that's 5-1 on the road, leading the NFL in touchdowns and points. The Cardinals are the lone team in the NFL that ranks in the top five in total offense and defense. Safety Tyrann Mathieu is NFC Defensive Player of the Month after piling up 27 tackles, two interceptions and six passes defensed in November.