The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Rams knock out Palmer, Cards
L.A. earns first shutout since 2014; Arizona QB suffers broken left arm.
The Los Angeles Rams will finally have something to celebrate on their long flight home.
Jared Goff ran for a touchdown and threw for another and Greg Zuerlein made four field goals as the Rams won for the first time in three appearances in Britain, beating the Arizona Cardinals 33-0 at Twickenham Stadium on Sunday.
Goff completed 22 of 37 passes for 235 yards with an interception and Todd Gurley ran for
106 yards and a touchdown for the NFC West-leading Rams (5-2). Los Angeles has won five of its first seven games for the first time since 2003 — the last time the Rams finished with a winning record.
Arizona (3-4) heads home with significant questions after quarterback Carson Palmer broke his left arm in the second quarter and did not return.
“Carson will have surgery on his arm,” Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said. “His arm is broken.”
Palmer, who finished 10 for 18 for 122 yards, was hit by Rams linebacker Alec Ogletree and intercepted with 5:48 remaining in the first half. He was replaced by longtime backup Drew Stanton, who completed 5 of 14 passes for 162 yards and an interception and was unable to close what began as a 6-0 deficit.
Stanton will be the quarterback going forward.
“Drew’s played and won a lot of games for us,” Arians said.
Gurley’s 18-yard touchdown run immediately followed Palmer’s interception, and Goff helped push the Rams’ lead to 20-0 after he took a zone-read keeper 9 yards for a touchdown.
Zuerlein, who set a franchise record by making seven field goals in a win against the Dallas Cowboys on Oct. 1, connected from 23, 33, 53 and 34 yards, and Kupp finished off the scoring by tak- ing a screen pass 18 yards for a touchdown with 3:53 remaining.
Adrian Peterson, in his second game for the Cardinals since being acquired via a trade with the New Orleans Saints, was held to just 21 yards on 11 carries. He ran for
134 yards and two touchdowns in his debut a week ago, a win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Rams had not shut out an opponent since a 24-0 road victory against the Washington Redskins on Dec. 7, 2014, while the Cardinals had not failed to
score since a 58-0 loss at Seattle on Dec. 9, 2012.
It was also the second consecutive shutout in Britain after both teams scored in each of the previous 19.
In addition to Palmer, the Cardinals lost two players to injury who later returned: inside linebacker Karlos Dansby (left hand) and defensive tackle Frostee Rucker (right knee).
Meanwhile, Rams center John Sullivan (left knee) and rookie wide receiver Josh Reynolds (concussion) left the game and did not return.
The Cardinals go into their bye week and return Nov. 5 against the San Francisco 49ers. The
Rams also have a bye and next play the New York Giants.