Top 5 Players Who Will Determine Rams vs Cardinals Week 14 Battle

The Arizona Cardinals will host the Los Angeles Rams for a pivotal NFC West showdown... not for the Cardinals, but certainly for the Rams as they aim to add to their resume to claim a highly-competitive NFC West title race. Arizona is out of the playoffs, in case you missed it. Los Angeles is gearing up for a Super Bowl run. Truly a tale of two cities.

The Rams are every bit as talented as you would assume given that status, but the Cardinals are lacking in star power, either. Both teams possess several players who could be argued to be the best at their position, and it will create some fun matchups to watch.

The top-five players in this game has a new number one this week, and I already know many won't be happy about that. It's also a boring week for the Cardinals' best players, but perhaps the Rams top players could be a surprise, if for no other reason than because of how many options I have to choose from.

But as always, I do not pick quarterbacks; but I'll still break down the two veteran gunslingers.

The quarterbacks...

Another week of big numbers for Jacoby Brissett, and another loss on the team's record. Brissett is what he is, and that's a quarterback who posts big numbers and is generally fun to watch. He's facing another stout defense with the Rams, but their pass rush and turnover-savvy defensive backs won't make this an easy outing for the vet.

On the other side of the field, Matthew Stafford is playing at an exceptionally high-level -- perhaps even the best of his entire career. He's throwing touchdowns at a high-rate and avoiding turnovers. We saw this level of efficiency from Stafford in his first season with the Rams, and they went on to win the Super Bowl that year. Stafford is playing at that level and has them pointed in that direction.

5. Davante Adams

When the Rams added Adams in the offseason, I remember thinking one thing to myself: Are you kidding me? And I was right to feel that way, as Adams has dominated in his role as a redzone target and he's pacing the league with 14 receiving touchdowns (and counting) in 12 games. His connection with Stafford has been superb.

Many have said that Stafford's touchdown count is less impressive because of the short touchdown passes to Adams, and you can feel that way if you'd like. Still, those touchdowns are worth the same amount of points no matter where they are caught, and Adams scores points better than any receiver in football.

4. Josh Sweat

This marks one of the few weeks where Sweat isn't the best pass rusher on the field, and the Rams have multiple stud pass rushers to make life hell for opposing quarterbacks. But Sweat still has 11 sacks on the year, which ties his career best in four less games. He's also tied for the fourth most in the league headed into the game.

Arizona's pass rush still hasn't figured things out aside from Sweat, but it hasn't made things easy for opposing teams to try and game plan for him, either. Sweat is simply a wrecking ball and gives the Cardinals an ace to get after the quarterback. The Rams aren't surrendering many sacks this season, so it'll likely be up to Sweat to once again get after the quarterback.

3. Jared Verse

This may not be a popular opinion, but I believe Verse is the best defensive player on the field when these two teams square off. Verse won Defensive Rookie of the Year last season despite only recording 4.5 sacks. He has 6.0 this season, and he's second on his team behind Byron Young's 10.0. So from a numbers standpoint, it seems odd to say Verse is better than Sweat, his fellow pass rushers, or even other studs like Budda Baker.

However, that's where I stand, and I won't be backing off that claim. Verse does more than just sack the quarterback for the Rams, and his play allows his teammates to pad their stats -- and that's not to disparage Young or anyone else. He's simply the defender that opposing team's circle and forge their offensive game plan around. Verse is elite in just his second season.

2. Trey McBride

I already know that I'm going to get hate for placing McBride at two instead of one this week, and it's completely understandable why. What McBride is doing this season is extraordinary and historic. What he's accomplished over the last three seasons is otherworldly. The way that he has turned around the Cardinals' passing game alone has been immeasurable.

There's simply no overlooking what McBride does from his tight end spot. For the 2025 season, he's the best tight end in football and it's not close. In the grand scheme of things, I challenge you to name just three tight ends in the league who are currently better than he is.

1. Puka Nacua

I hear your gripes and they are all completely valid to have McBride under Nacua. If you say that McBride is a better tight end than Nacua is a wide receiver, I would listen to an argument. If you told me McBride was more important to the Cardinals offense than Nacua is for the Rams offense, I could understand your logic.

However, what Nacua has accomplished in less than three seasons with no hype, expectations, or beliefs in his ability to do as much is absurd. Nacua is putting together one of the best starts to any receivers career across generations. The touchdown numbers do not do justice to what the former fifth-round pick is doing right now, and yet there's still no denying his claim to being perhaps the best receiver in football.

Nacua's competition for that claim is much stiffer than McBride's claim is at tight end, but they're equally dominant at everything they do respectively.