INGLEWOOD — After an interception with less than four minutes left, the Rams leading the Arizona Cardinals by four, safety Kamren Kinchens ran into the end zone he had just successfully defended. His teammates joined him for a celebratory dance, believing they had done enough to leave SoFi Stadium with a win.
Instead, the Rams offense, tasked with putting the game away, failed to get a first down for the fourth time in the game. They punted the ball away to the Cardinals before the two-minute warning.
And the weary Rams defense, on the field for 36:55 of game time, kept getting pushed further and further back until their backs were up against that same end zone. Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray tried to squeeze the ball in to tight end Trey McBride. Safety Kamren Kurl tipped the ball into the air, and cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon dove, catching the ball centimeters away from the ground for the interception.
Fifteen weeks after being embarrassed to the tune of 41 points and 489 yards against these same Cardinals, it was the Rams’ defense that secured a 13-9 win.
They gave up 396 yards, but the Rams (10-6) held Arizona to 6-for-13 on third down, 0-for-2 on fourth and, most importantly, 1-for-4 in the red zone. They sacked Murray four times, including two from rookie defensive lineman Braden Fiske. Linebacker Jared Verse walled off James Conner on a fourth-down run to turn the ball over on downs in the red zone. Witherspoon dove to break up a pass in the end zone.
And they were able to shake off the few mistakes they made. Outside linebacker Michael Hoecht’s defensive holding call in the end zone gave the Cardinals (7-9) a fresh start at the Rams 1. But after McBride scored on a screen pass, Hoecht leaped up to block the extra point, his third blocked kick of the year.
Meanwhile, the Rams offense started the game mired in the same slog that has dominated first quarters for the team this season.
Four drives, 60 yards, 1-for-5 on third down and four punts. And a 13th first quarter without a touchdown in 16 games. The Cardinals’ pass rush was hurrying Stafford as Joe Noteboom struggled in place of Rob Havenstein (shoulder) at right tackle.
As the defense shut the Cardinals out in the first half, the offense finally got going after a 29-yard catch-and-run from receiver Cooper Kupp. Stafford narrowly avoided three interceptions on the drive, but his loping scramble got the Rams to the Arizona 5 and Kyren Williams punched the ball in from the 1.
Add in a 53-yard Josh Karty field goal after Puka Nacua moved the Rams 42 yards and into range, and the team had a 10-0 lead at the half.
A fourth-quarter field goal from Karty was all the scoring and the offense managed in the second half. The unit possessed the ball for a total of 2:12 in the third quarter. The onus was on the Rams’ defense to win the game.
A Byron Young pressure forced a Murray throwaway on third down as the Cardinals settled for a field goal in the red zone. Then, with less than four minutes to play and facing 4th-and-10, Murray heaved a ball to Marvin Harrison Jr. in double coverage at the goal line.
The ball sailed over Harrison’s outstretched arms, and Kinchens came away with the interception, sliding into the Rams 10 after a short return. Witherspoon would seal the win with his own pick one drive later.
The Rams had done their part for the weekend, giving themselves the chance to clinch the NFC West if three of Buffalo, Minnesota, Cleveland, Washington and San Francisco win over the next two days. And the defense had found some redemption for their worst outing of the season.