Buried in a four-game losing streak, the St. Louis Rams will try to conjure up a repeat of their most impressive performance of the season when they host the NFC West-leading Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
Despite the slide that has severely damaged their postseason hopes, the Rams are unbeaten within the division (3-0) and posted a stunning 24-22 victory at Arizona in Week 4 in what served as rookie running back Todd Gurley's coming-out party.
The Cardinals are riding a five-game winning streak and have emerged as one of the NFC's top contenders for the Super Bowl, but there are concerns after their top two running backs, including leading rusher Chris Johnson, were injured in last week's victory at San Francisco.
Here are three keys to the game for both the Cardinals and the Rams.
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1. Spread the wealth
The depth of Arizona's receiving corps has shown in recent weeks with rookie speedster J.J. Nelson emerging as another threat while fellow wideouts John Brown and Michael Floyd dealt with hamstring injuries. With Brown and Floyd back in the lineup and the running game in a state of flux, Cardinals coach Bruce Arians would be wise to put the ball in the hands of quarterback Carson Palmer.
2. More big plays from Tyrann Mathieu
Safety Mathieu tweeted that the Rams didn't do "anything special" in the first matchup and said the Cardinals beat themselves. The reigning NFC Defensive Player of the Month seems bent on proving that it won't happen again. Mathieu, who broke up a sure TD pass to tight end Jared Cook in Week 4, is coming off a 13-tackle, one-interception game and is the only player in the league with at least 70 tackles and four picks.
3. Ball protection
With Chris Johnson done for the regular season and Andre Ellington (turf toe) sidelined, rookie David Johnson will get the start in the backfield. The one knock on David Johnson has been his fumbling issues, including one he lost against Arizona in the first meeting. Johnson was a big part of the passing game in that matchup with four receptions for 63 yards and a touchdown.
1. More touches for Tavon Austin
Rams coach Jeff Fisher acknowledged that the team must find more ways to get the ball in the hands of Austin, who had his best receiving game versus Arizona with six catches for 96 yards and two TDs. Austin has been utlized more out of the backfield of late, but St. Louis needs to find a spark for the league's worst passing game.
2. Revive the pass rush
The Rams registered 26 sacks through its first seven games, including four of Carson Palmer in the Week 4 matchup, but injuries to starting defensive ends Robert Quinn and Chris Long have taken a toll. The Rams have only four sacks in the past four games and must find a way to apply pressure on Palmer and slow down the NFL's highest-scoring offense (32.3 ppg).
3. Get Gurley going
Gurley rushed for 144 of his 146 yards in the second half at Arizona in his first career start, kicking off a four-game stretch in which he rushed for at least 128 yards. His last three games, however, have produced a combined 130 yards on 46 carries behind an injury-ravaged offensive line. The Rams need to re-establish Gurley against a defensive front expected to be without two starters.
