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Cardinals eyeing .500 finish vs. Rams

Dec 30, 2007 - 11:24 AM St Louis (3-12) at Arizona (7-8) 4:15 pm EST

GLENDALE, Arizona (Ticker) -- What loomed as a potential showdown for a division title has evolved into little more than playing for pride.

The Arizona Cardinals host the struggling St. Louis Rams on Sunday in the regular-season finale between a pair of clubs who entered the season with much higher aspirations.

A trendy pick in the preseason to capture the NFC West, the Cardinals need a victory over the Rams to finish with their first non-losing season since recording a 9-7 record in 1998 - the last season they made the playoffs.

Back-to-back road losses at Seattle and New Orleans KO'd Arizona's playoff hopes before the team bounced back with a 30-27 overtime victory over the Atlanta Falcons last weekend.

Kurt Warner threw for 361 yards and three touchdowns while directing a pair of drives that resulted in a tying field goal in regulation and a winning 31-yard kick from Neil Rackers in the extra session.

Wide receiver Anquan Boldin, who had been battling a nagging hip injury and dislocated toe, was Warner's favorite target, pulling in 13 receptions for 162 yards and two touchdowns.

In the process, Boldin became the fastest player in league history to reach 400 receptions, achieving the milestone in his 67th game. Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow held the previous mark in 72 games.

The Cardinals won the first meeting between the teams, 34-31, in overtime when Warner relieved an injured Matt Leinart and threw three TD passes.

Ironically, that loss had featured the highest point total for St. Louis during its season-opening, eight-game losing streak.

Injuries to quarterback Marc Bulger, running back Steven Jackson and along the offensive line all contributed to the awful start by the Rams.

After bouncing back with three wins in its next four games, St. Louis has dropped three in a row, including last week's 41-24 drubbing by the Pittsburgh Steelers.