FINAL SCORE: Colt McCoy leads Cardinals to 27-17 win over Rams

In a battle of backup quarterbacks, Colt McCoy and the Arizona Cardinals bested  John Wolford and the Los Angeles Rams, picking up a 27-17 win on the road Sunday afternoon.

McCoy had 238 passing yards and a touchdown, getting the ball out quickly, and James Conner had a pair of rushing touchdowns.

They got a strong defensive performance, forcing two turnovers, holding the Rams to 3-of-11 on third down and limiting star receiver Cooper Kupp to only three receptions for minus-1 yards before he exited the game with an ankle injury.

The Cardinals improve to 4-6 and move ahead of the Rams, who fall to 3-6, in the NFC West standings, and pick up their first division win of the year.

The recap of the game is below.

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Defensive starters

The Cardinals were on defense to start the game.

The starting lineup was this:

Defensive line: Zach Allen, J.J. Watt, Leki Fotu

Linebacker: Markus Golden, Ben Niemann, Isaiah Simmons, Zaven Collins

Cornerback: Antonio Hamilton, Marco Wilson

Safety: Budda Baker, Jalen Thompson

Rams 3, Cardinals 0

The Cardinals give up a fourth-down play but hold the Rams to 1-for-3 on third down on the initial drive of the game. It is a long drive but takes nearly nine minutes of the game and the Rams go up 3-0 on a 36-yard field goal.

Cornerback Antonio Hamilton gets hurt on the drive. The Cardinals are already down a cornerback as Byron Murphy is inactive for the game.

Starting offensive line

The Cardinals have to put together an odd starting lineup on the offensive line with four starters out.

The lineup is Josh Jones at left tackle, Rashaad Coward at left guard, Billy Price at center, Lecitus Smith at right guard and Kelvin Beachum at right tackle.

Zach Ertz injures knee

Tight end Zach Ertz makes a third-down 12-yard catch for a first down but, after going down, grabs his left knee and has to leave the game.

He walks off the field on his own but is visibly emotional. The Cardinals could be down another player on offense.

Cardinals 3, Rams 3

The Cardinals respond to the Rams’ field goal with one of their own.

They open their drive with 11 straight passes, using a quick-passing game. Colt McCoy completes eight of them, A.J. Green has a key fourth-down catch and, after stalling, Tristan Vizcaino, starting in place of Matt Prater, hits a 36-yard field goal to tie the game.

Cardinals 10, Rams 3

It has been a game of three-and-outs in the first half, but the Cardinals find the end zone first.

The Cardinals go three-and-out twice and the Rams go three-and-out three times, but after the Rams’ third punt, the Cardinals put together a nice drive.

They go 66 yards on 13 plays in more than six minutes. They continue to use a quick-passing attack and James Conner caps the drive with a four-yard touchdown run.

The big difference this week? The offense is not hurting itself. There were no penalties, sacks or bad snaps.

Strip sack, but Cardinals robbed of TD

The Cardinals force a turnover but are robbed of a scoop-and-score touchdown by J.J. Watt. Myjai Sanders knocks the ball out of John Wolford’s hand and Watt picks it up, but the officials blow the play dead when Watt has an open path to the end zone. They rule it incomplete but, upon review, it is a fumble and the Cardinals take over at the Rams’ 30.

Cardinals 17, Rams 3

The Cardinals still get their touchdown. After taking over following Wolford’s fumble, Colt McCoy finds A.J. Green in the back corner of the end zone for a six-yard touchdown pass with 24 seconds left in the half. Arizona gets the ball after halftime as well.

McCoy hurt, penalized

The Cardinals took over at their own 20 after the Rams had to punt the ball away in the third quarter.

On the first play of the drive, Colt McCoy got hurt.

He was nearly sacked by Justin Hollins and got the ball out, but he was called for intentional grounding. He was slow getting up, appearing to have injured his left knee or hamstring.

Trace McSorley had to enter the game.

Cardinals 17, Rams 10

The Rams finally show some life. Tight end Tyler Higbee sparks the drive with a 34-yard reception on a screen.

J.J. Watt is penalized twice, once for delay of game when he spikes the ball out of frustration, and then on a neutral zone infraction on the very next play.

Darrell Henderson runs four yards for the touchdown to make it a seven-point game.

Cooper Kupp injured

In the fourth quarter, a high throw from John Wolford intended for Cooper Kupp is incomplete. Marco Wilson is in coverage and ends up rolling onto Kupp’s leg. Kupp appears to have an injury to his right leg or ankle and has to exit the game. He has only three catches for a loss of one yard in the game.

Cardinals 24, Rams 10

James Conner’s second touchdown run of the game gives the Cardinals a 14-point lead.

They start with good field position, taking over at their own 40, get a big 26-yard one-handed catch on fourth down by Rondale Moore and then, two plays later, Conner finds the end zone.

BUDDA BAKER INT

Baker, who was not expected to play with a sprained ankle, makes a big play in the fourth quarter. A throw intended for Brian Skowronek is broken up and tipped by Isaiah Simmons and Baker snags it.

He returns it 53 yards to the Rams’ 25.

Cardinals 27, Rams 10

After the interception by Baker, the Cardinals can’t pick up a first down, but Tristan Vizcaino tacks on three more points with a 46-yard field goal.

Cardinals 27, Rams 17

The Rams pick up a garbage-time touchdown as John Wolford throws his first career NFL touchdown pass. It is a three-yard score to Van Jefferson with seven seconds left in the game.

Story originally appeared on Cards Wire