Arizona Cardinals’ playoff meltdown was one for…

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Nothing could help the Arizona Cardinals on Monday night.

Not J.J. Watt returning almost two months early from a shoulder injury.

Not an 8-1 record on the road.

Not having both running backs, James Conner and Chase Edmonds, on the field for the same game since Week 15.

That’s because nothing went right for the Cardinals in their first playoff game since 2015. Arizona turned in one of the worst performances in NFL playoff history Monday, losing 34-11 to the Los Angeles Rams, ending their season at 11-7 with five losses in their final six games.

Monday’s game was over by time Warren G. and Montel Jordan took the stage at halftime.

Arizona went three-and-out on their first four drives and had minus-3 yards in the first quarter. By the end of their fourth possession, the Cardinals had four punts on four drives and minus-4 yards to show for it.

At one point, Rams wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. had more passing yards than Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray — 40 to 28.

The Cardinals’ offense just couldn’t find a spark. It couldn’t even find a match. The first time the Cardinals got a first down came with 6:45 left in the first half. Arizona didn’t have a play in Rams territory until there was 6:48 left in the third quarter. They went 0-for-9 on third down, just the eighth instance of 0-for-9 or worse in a playoff game during the Super Bowl era. Arizona had eight consecutive drives result in zero first downs, a fumble or an interception, which was the longest such streak to open a playoff game since the Oakland Raiders in 1980.

The Cardinals’ 183 yards of total offense were the fewest allowed by the Rams this season.

The Rams’ defense overwhelmed the Cardinals’ offense early and often. It sacked Murray twice and pressured him throughout, including about midway through the second quarter when it put the game away. With Arizona at its own 4, Rams linebacker Troy Reeder chased Murray into the end zone. Instead of throwing the ball away, Murray threw an underhand pass that was picked off by Rams cornerback David Long Jr., who returned it 3 yards for a touchdown to put the Rams up 21-0.

That sealed Arizona’s fate: Teams were 82-0 this season when leading by 21 points or more.

The obit for Arizona’s season could’ve been written in front of the halftime meal.

By halftime:

• Murray had seven completions and the deepest was 1 air yard, for an average of minus-0.7 air yards.

• Murray had just one rush for minus-1 yards and no scrambles. Murray’s 88 rushes — including 30 scrambles — during the regular season were fourth among quarterbacks.

• The Cardinals averaged 1.5 yards per play, the second fewest in the first half of a playoff game over the past 20 seasons.

But all the blame can’t be put on the offense. Arizona’s defense had its own struggles, starting with the Rams’ first offensive first play when Rams running back Sony Michel went for 35 yards. Rookie cornerback Marco Wilson struggled all game against Beckham Jr., who caught a touchdown.

It was one mistake after another for the Cardinals, one bad play followed by another bad play. Arizona’s 7-0 start was all but a memory Monday night in Inglewood. The Cardinals finished the season 4-7 after being the best of the NFC for the first half of the year.

The second half meltdown comes a year after the Cardinals finished 3-6 to miss the playoffs.