With Palmer at controls, Cardinals’ offense in high gear

But that’s not quite true. Together, they form the NFC’s most dominant quarterback-receiver duo this side of Matt Ryan and Julio Jones.

The Arizona Cardinals (3-0) are making their case as the NFC’s best team, while the St. Louis Rams (1-2) are still trying to find their identity. “He’s now getting in football shape”. Arians said Sunday night. It doesn’t mean he’ll fade to fantasy obscurity, however, given how red-hot the Cardinals’ offense has been to start the season.

Then, five days later-just two days after Palmer signed a three-year, $50 million extension-his season was over.

If it happens, the timing couldn’t be better. “Keep your foot on their throat”. “It’s not saying those guys left something out there because we wasn’t out there or anything like that. That’s how you stay grounded”. Chief among the missing faces is Todd Bowles, the team’s former defensive coordinator now running his own show in New York. This is a team that could give the Patriots a tough time when they next square off at the end of November.

Through three games, Arians-ball sure looks like a force to be reckoned with in the NFL.

“Obviously the Cardinals are running right now”, he told reporters this week.

-Ten different Cardinals have scored touchdowns. No one comes close to that plus-77 differential.

Against the 49ers, Palmer’s last drive was conservative in terms of Palmer’s exposure.

Here’s what he is seeing, more clearly than at any time in his 12-year career: the field, the intentions of opposing defensive coordinators and a path to the postseason.

“All the plays Julio makes, it just feels normal to him”, says Atlanta head coach DAN QUINN.

But it also appears Cardinals fans need to adjust and be quieter when their team has the ball.

“We’re 1-2, but we’ve not made enough plays defensively to win games”, coach Jeff Fisher said. Brittan Golden moved up the depth chart to replace him as the fifth receiver, but had only one snap on offense. On Sunday, Palmer won his ninth consecutive game as a starter. Iupati, who had meniscus repaired, has practiced on a limited basis the past two weeks.

The catharsis came with the full realization that his 2014 season-so pregnant with promise during Arizona’s 7-1 start-was over. He was questionable to return to the game but did eventually re-enter the contest. Rating the seriousness of that injury “on a scale of one to three”, said the surgeon who operated on Palmer, “this is a four“. Even backup Cardinals running back Chris Johnson went off. He rushed for 110 yards and two touchdowns. The joint was popped into place and Okafor won’t miss time.

[MAIOCCO: Tomsula: With Kaepernick, 49ers “not a drop-back team”]. A week earlier, in a 48-23 Cards’ win, he had eight receptions for 112 yards and three scores.

-RUN DEFENSE: B plus. He now has 219 rushing yards total this season and is averaging 4.2 yards per carry. In Palmer’s last three against the Rams, Fitzgerald has 29 catches for 288 yards and three TDs.

By comparison, the Rams are averaging only 16.7 points per game. The 49ers returned it 37. “We watched their film last week, and they didn’t just do it all on offense as to where all the points were”. Coach Bruce Arians’ message has been similar after each 2015 victory: Nice job, but it doesn’t mean anything yet. They took advantage of matchups in the secondary, including using Larry Fitzgerald in the slot effectively.