Arizona capitalized on the change of possession, leaning on running back James Conner and the scrambling ability of quarterback Kyler Murray to set up a 23-yard touchdown pass from Murray to wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. for an early 7-0 lead.<\/p>\n
After Los Angeles was forced to punt on the ensuing series, Arizona extended its lead to 14-0 with a 60-yard touchdown pass from Murray to Harrison Jr. on the first play of that drive.<\/p>\n
The Rams were again forced to punt after their third offensive series, though punter Ethan Evans<\/a>‘ 67-yard punt was downed at the 1-yard line by cornerback Charles Woods<\/a>. The shallow starting field position didn’t deter the Cardinals, who reached the endzone 13 plays later on an 18-yard touchdown pass from Murray to tight end Elijah Higgins to up 21-0 early in the second quarter.<\/p>\n A 42-yard, out-of-structure completion from quarterback Matthew Stafford to wide receiver Demarcus Robinson<\/a>, plus an unnecessary roughness penalty, helped the Rams finally get on the board with a 29-yard field goal by kicker Joshua Karty<\/a> to cut their deficit to 18.<\/p>\n By halftime, the Rams were 1 for 6 on third down and trailed 24-3.<\/p>\n Conner’s 5-yard touchdown run made it 31-3 Cardinals with 10:33 left in the third quarter.<\/p>\n