GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Arizona Cardinals didn’t find the primetime spotlight so appealing during the majority of their appearances on “Monday Night Football.”
They haven’t been all that successful against the San Diego Chargers for that matter, either.
After going 3-9 all-time against San Diego and 5-16-1 in their previous Monday games, the Cardinals changed both trends on this particular Monday night. Arizona rallied for an 18-17 victory over the Chargers in front of a sellout crowd during the season opener at University of Phoenix Stadium.
Quarterback Carson Palmer led the Cardinals on a late-game, 91-yard drive, connecting with rookie wide receiver John Brown on a 13-yard touchdown pass with 2:25 remaining to win it.
Arizona’s defense stifled Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers during the final two minutes, preserving the victory.
Palmer finished 24 of 37 for 304 yards with two touchdown passes and no interceptions as the Cardinals, who missed the playoffs despite posting a 10-6 record last season, got 2014 off to a good start.
The Chargers scored two third-quarter touchdowns, a 6-yard pass from Rivers to wide receiver Malcom Floyd and a 20-yard rush from running back Ryan Mathews, to take a 17-6 lead. However, San Diego’s defense couldn’t do its part late in the game.
A 5-yard Palmer touchdown pass to running back Stepfan Taylor early in the fourth quarter pulled Arizona within 17-12. The two-point conversion attempt failed, as did another try after Brown’s score.
“Tough one to lose, obviously,” Chargers coach Mike McCoy said. “We didn’t play well enough in the fourth quarter, going in 17-6, being up and not finishing the game. That’s what it comes down to — when the game was on the line, we didn’t make enough football plays as a team in all phases of the game. We’ve got to coach better, we’ve got to play better, we’ve got to execute better. It’s a team loss.”
Rivers completed 21 of 36 passes for 238 yards with a touchdown and an interception. The Chargers had trouble running the ball all night, finishing with 52 yards on the ground.
The Cardinals got more than that just from running back Andre Ellington, who wasn’t even expected to play after missing practice time with a foot injury that some reports indicated would cost him four to six weeks. Ellington not only was active, but he started the game and finished with 13 carries for 53 yards and five receptions for 27 yards.
Cardinals wide receiver Michael Floyd caught five passes for 119 yards. Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona’s longtime No. 1 wideout, finished with just one reception for 22 yards. He wasn’t targeted a single time during the first three quarters — the first time that occurred in his career.
“Sometimes you’re only going to catch a couple. The same can be said for every big-time receiver in this league,” Palmer said. “But Larry comes up with big plays when we need him. …
“You’ve got to go where your best opportunity to get a completion is, and more often than not, that’s Larry, even when he’s double covered. But sometimes you just don’t want to force balls into him, and we did a good job when he was covered and getting pressed and having guys spy on him like the safety was a couple times.”
Neither team did a lot with the chances it had on offense in the first two quarters, and as a result, the Cardinals took a slim 6-3 lead into halftime.
The Cardinals scored first, courtesy of a 22-yard field goal by rookie kicker Chandler Catanzaro, who beat out veteran Jay Feely for the job near the end of camp. Arizona had a third-and-2 situation at the Chargers’ 4-yard line just before that, but Palmer overthrew Brown in the end zone on a fade pass.
The Cardinals’ previous drive featured a 63-yard completion from Palmer to Floyd, but it stalled at the San Diego 39 when Ellington fumbled the ball and tackle Bobby Massie couldn’t hang onto it after seemingly recovering it. Massie’s recovery was reversed during an instant-replay challenge by the Chargers, and San Diego linebacker Donald Butler was credited with coming up with the recovery.
San Diego generated a total of just 60 yards of offense during its first three series of the game, failing to get much going in either the running game or through the air with Rivers. On the “drive” that produced the first points for the Chargers, they were credited with minus-1 yard.
Nick Novak’s 36-yard field goal came after the Chargers linebacker Jerry Attaochu broke free inside to block a punt by the Cardinals’ Drew Butler, who was signed only hours before the game as an emergency replacement. Regular punter Dave Zastudil injured his groin in practice late in the week.
It looked as if San Diego was on its way to the end zone during its fifth drive, however. Rivers helped move the Chargers 34 yards on seven plays and got them to the Cardinals’ 37-yard line until his pass intended for Eddie Royal was intercepted by cornerback Jerraud Powers.
Powers returned the pick 12 yards and, after two quick completions by Palmer, including a pass over the middle to wider receiver Ted Ginn Jr. that went for 25 yards, Catanzaro hit from 44 yards as the first half expired.
“I thought we played well, but coming out of the half, we let them get two early scores,” Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson said. “They ended up getting us on a couple plays, getting us out of position, and obviously we weren’t on the same page. But we gathered our feet and went out and played football for the rest of the game.”
Chargers linebacker Dwight Freeney called the loss “absolutely frustrating,” but added, “Who said we were going to be 15-1 or 16-0? In this game, in this league, I’ve been around long enough to understand. Every game is tough. You can always learn more from a loss than a win most times because you have to correct those problems and those issues to move on.”
NOTES: Cardinals S Tyrann Mathieu, who underwent surgery last December to repair two torn ligaments in his left knee, was placed on the inactive list for the game. He will have to wait at least another week to make his return. … San Diego played without its two backup defensive tackles, Ryan Carrethers and Ricardo Mathews. … The Cardinals honored former QB Kurt Warner at halftime by inducting him into their Ring of Honor. … The Cardinals lost starting DT Frostee Rucker to a calf injury in the first quarter and then starting OLB John Abraham to a possible concussion early in the third. Their status was uncertain.