Big Red
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- Mar 16, 2019
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The stakes couldn’t be higher for the Cardinals-Rams regular season finale, but Los Angeles is entering extremely short-handed.
The Rams' offense took another major hit Wednesday, as star wide receiver Cooper Kupp is not expected to play in Week 17 due to COVID-19.
The Rams won't have starting quarterback Jared Goff, leading rusher Darrell Henderson and Kupp, their leading receiver. Left tackle Andrew Whitworth is not expected back from a knee injury, and running back Cam Akers is questionable with a high ankle sprain.
Los Angeles is turning to backup quarterback John Wolford to lead the way, and he's never taken an NFL snap. Despite all of the personnel concerns, Sean McVay does not sound like a coach who believes he is bringing a knife to a gunfight.
"I'm confident in John, and I'm also confident in the other 10 players around him and understanding what guys need to do to step up," McVay said. "We've got to go do it. We've got to go do it collectively, but, man, what a great opportunity to respond. Let's go lay the chips out there and see what the heck happens."
Wide receiver Robert Woods is the Rams' best remaining skill player, and he spoke glowingly of Wolford on Wednesday.
The Cardinals know they have to be prepared for a quarterback who has arm talent and the type of mobility that can keep defenses honest. The Cardinals and Rams can both clinch a playoff berth with a victory.
"He's still an NFL player, and he's over there for a reason," outside linebacker Markus Golden said. "I bet he's excited to get his chance, so you know he's going to come in and go hard. We've got to stick to the script and do everything our coaches ask us to do."
The Cardinals were in a similar situation last week against a 49ers team that was missing multiple starters. The personnel shortage wasn't apparent during the game, as San Francisco secured a 20-12 victory that was more lopsided than the final score indicated.
"Last week, everybody assumed or felt that we should have won the game just because of the circumstances," quarterback Kyler Murray said. "It's still the NFL. At the end of the day, we have to go execute to win the game."
Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury was aggressive against San Francisco, attempting five fourth-down conversions before the final drive. He said the Rams' injury situation will be a part of the calculus for in-game decisions, but he's not banking on a defensive slugfest.
"That'll definitely be taken into account, but with Sean calling plays and with those weapons they still have, it's going to be a tough challenge for us to try to slow them down," Kingsbury said. "We've lost to these guys seven times in a row. It's going to be a deal where we have to play our game."
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