The Sports Xchange

GLENDALE, Ariz. — The red zone had been like a gold mine for the Arizona Cardinals during their 3-0 start. They scored touchdowns on 11 of their first 12 trips inside opponents’ 20-yard line — the second most such scores in the NFL.

On Sunday against the St. Louis Rams at University of Phoenix Stadium, the red zone was more like a dead zone for Arizona.

The St. Louis defense forced the Cardinals to settle for five field goals and the Rams offense got three touchdown passes from quarterback Nick Foles, two of which went to wide receiver Tavon Austin, as the Rams held on for a 24-22 victory.

The win snapped a two-game slide by the Rams (2-2). The loss was just the fourth at home for the Cardinals under third-year coach Bruce Arians.

“When you’re playing someone like Carson (Palmer) with the athletes that they have and as well coached as they are, you go into it saying, ‘They’re going to get down there, but field goals are going to be a win for your defense,'” said Rams coach Jeff Fisher, whose team is 2-0 in the NFC West after also having beaten the Seahawks in Week 1. “When you can hold them to three rather than seven, you feel pretty good about it.”

Arizona relied on the leg of Chandler Catanzaro to stay in the game after failing to score touchdowns on each of its first four trips into red zone territory. The Cardinals finally found pay dirt after Foles’ 20-yard touchdown pass to Austin gave St. Louis a 24-15 lead with 8:16 left to play.

The Cardinals went on an 80-yard drive, capped by quarterback Carson Palmer’s 23-yard touchdown throw to rookie running back David Johnson. But after the extra point, Arizona was still trailing by two.

The Cardinals forced the Rams to punt and got the ball back with plenty of time left. But the league’s highest-scoring offense couldn’t answer back one last time, as the Cardinals stalled with an incomplete pass on fourth-and-2 form the Rams’ 43-yard line with 1:44 remaining.

St. Louis running back Todd Gurley rushed for 146 yards on 19 carries, which included a 52-yard run in the fourth quarter that set up the Rams’ game-clinching touchdown.

What we learned about the Cardinals:

1. The offense is human after all. Despite leading the NFL in scoring after the first three weeks, the Cardinals could only score one touchdown and they were only 1-for-5 in touchdown efficiency in the red zone. “The plays were there to make,” coach Bruce Arians said. “We just didn’t get it done.”

2. Despite the loss, the Cardinals still aren’t lacking for confidence, which should be interpreted as a good thing for them. “I thought we would win the game the entire game,” quarterback Carson Palmer said. “Even when we turned it over on downs on the last drive, there was a lot of belief in that locker room, a lot of trust in each other. We don’t ever feel that we are out of it. I think that sometimes these things are a blessing in disguise; just because I think this team will respond exactly the way it’s supposed to.”

3. The Cardinals’ run defense took a major hit by allowing the Rams’ Todd Gurley to rush for 141 yards against them in the second half. “I can’t wait to see them again, though,” said defensive end Calais Campbell, who last week said Arizona’s standard goal is to not allow more than 80 rushing yards to opposing teams.

Etc.:

–S Rashad Johnson had to leave Sunday’s game with a back problem in the second half, although he later was able to return.

–RB David Johnson had a tough day, first fumbling away the opening kickoff and then letting a pass go through his hands on what would have been a touchdown catch: “A lot of veterans came up to me and coaches came up to me and told me just to shrug it off, let it go, get on to the next play,” Johnson said. “I just came out and tried to get over everything.”

–QB Carson Palmer got hit far too much for Bruce Arians’ liking, getting sacked four times and getting hit at least a dozen other times. “It’s an NFC West game. That’s the nature of it,” Palmer said. “It’s a physical game. They’re a physical team. I feel fine, other than obviously what happened.”