How the West Was Won Week 11: Streaking Cardinals win again; maintain NFC West edge

All four teams in the NFC West were in action in Week 11 and more separation was created at the top of the division.

The Seattle Seahawks ran wild on the San Francisco 49ers, completing a season sweep in that rivalry, while the Arizona Cardinals won on Sunday Night Football for the second straight week.

And the St. Louis Rams squandered a 10-point fourth-quarter lead and lost on the road against the Baltimore Ravens.

Here’s a closer look at what transpired in Week 11 in the NFC West.

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Baltimore Ravens 16, St. Louis Rams 13

Justin Tucker kicked a 47-yard field goal as time expired, giving the Ravens a three-point win and handing the Rams their third straight loss.

Todd Gurley opened the scoring for St. Louis in the first quarter with a 1-yard touchdown run and when new starting quarterback Case Keenum hit Lance Kendricks with a 30-yard touchdown pass midway through the third quarter, thinks looked good for St. Louis.

That wouldn’t hold up.

The Ravens drew closer when Joe Flacco hit Jamar Aiken on a 3-yard touchdown pass with 11:11 left. Just about six minutes later, Tucker tied the game with a 20-yard field goal.

The Rams then shot themselves in the foot. With under a minute to play, Keenum was sacked by Courtney Upshaw, who beat left tackle Greg Robinson with his speed. Keenum fumbled and Lawrence Guy recovered. Four plays later, Tucker booted the game-winner. It was the fourth turnover for the Rams, who managed only 213 yards of offense despite the quarterback change.

St. Louis Money Quote: “That one was a hard one — probably one of the hardest I’ve been around since I’ve been here. It’s difficult when you lose that way in a game that you somewhat controlled, dictated — gave up a lead. But none the less, it’s hard to overcome four [fumbles] against a Super Bowl winning quarterback.” — Rams head coach Jeff Fisher

Stat of the Game: The Rams tied their season-high with the four turnovers — they also had four in a 24-10 loss to Green Bay Oct. 11. They’ve committed at least one turnover in every game this season.

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Seattle Seahawks 29, San Francisco 49ers 23

No Marshawn Lynch? No problem.

Rookie Thomas Rawls ran for 209 yards and a touchdown and Russell Wilson had has best game of the year, completing 24-of-29 for 260 yards and three scores in an easy Seattle win.

The Seahawks jumped out to a 20-0 lead on two Wilson-to-Tyler Lockett touchdown passes and a Rawls 2-yard scamper. Wilson and Rawls would hook up on a 32-yard touchdown strike in the fourth quarter to close out the scoring.

Rawls electrified the CenturyLink Field crowd with his physical running style. Early in the game, Rawls took a pass from Wilson, turned upfield and absolutely steamrolled San Francisco’s Tremaine Brock on a 12-yard gain.

The 49ers have lost three of their last four.

Seattle Money Quote: “I never (run) out of bounds. It’s just in my makeup. It’s my mentality. I think I would feel less of a person if I run out of bounds instead of going and showing toughness,” — Thomas Rawls

San Francisco Money Quote: “We didn’t fit up the run well, and we didn’t tackle well,” — 49ers head coach Jim Tomsula

Stat of the Game: Rawls averaged nearly seven yards per carry on Sunday and became only the third running back this season to eclipse the 200-yard plateau. Minnesota’s Adrian Peterson ran for 203 yards in Week 10 against Oakland and Tampa Bay’s Doug Martin piled up 235 yards earlier Sunday in a win over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Stat of the Game II: Wilson ended the game with a QB rating of 138.5, the third-highest mark of his career.

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Arizona Cardinals 34, Cincinnati Bengals 31

Some (not many) were suggesting this Sunday night tilt could be a preview of Super Bowl 50. If it was, fans are in for a treat come February.

It was a tale of two halves for Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer, who threw two picks in the first half, but rallied for three touchdown passes in the second half.

For Cincinnati, it was a game effort by quarterback Andy Dalton, who led the Bengals to 17 fourth-quarter points. Dalton engineered a drive that ended with a Mike Nugent field goal to tie the score with 1:03 left. Unfortunately for Cincinnati, it turned out to be too much time for Palmer and Co.

Palmer completed three straight passes, taking the Cardinals from their own 16 to the Bengals’ 27-yard line in :38. The Bengals were then called for unsportsmanlike conduct when the officials determined lineman Domata Peko was barking out signals which induced movement from Arizona right guard Ted Larsen. The penalty yardage made Chandler Catanzaro’s field goal attempt a lot easier, and the second-year kicker booted the first game-winning field goal of his career with :02 left.

The Cardinals are now 8-2 and maintained their three-game lead over Seattle in the NFC West.

Arizona Money Quote: “Big win against a team that’s pretty much undefeated with one loss and playing great football. For us to come out and play the way we did and win in that fashion was huge. It was just a great team win.” — Palmer

Stat of the Game: Palmer had a QB rating of 67.0 in the first half. In the second half, his rating was 150.44.

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Week 11 Award Winners

Offensive Player of the Week: Thomas Rawls, RB, Seattle Seahawks – Rawls killed the 49ers in the running game and the passing game. Not bad for an undrafted free agent from Central Michigan. Rawls is second in the league behind fellow rookie Karlos Williams, averaging 6.0 yards per carry on the season.

Honorable Mention: Arizona QB Carson Palmer, Arizona WR J.J. Nelson, Seattle QB Russell Wilson

 

Defensive Player of the Week: Deone Bucannon, S/LB, Arizona Cardinals – The second-year man out of Washington State was all over the field Sunday night. Bucannon had eight total tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack and recovered a fumble as the Cardinals moved to 8-2.

Honorable Mention: Seattle DE Cliff Avril, Arizona LB Kevin Minter, St. Louis DT Aaron Donald

 

Special Teams Player of the Week: Chandler Catanzaro, K, Arizona Cardinals – Two more field goals for Catanzaro, including his first game-winner in the NFL. The former Clemson Tiger has now connected on 18-of-20 attempts this season.

Honorable Mention: St. Louis P Johnny Hekker, Arizona P Drew Butler

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