The Arizona Cardinals rallied from an 11-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat the San Diego Chargers 18-17 on Monday night.
Carson Palmer passed for 304 yards and two touchdowns, including a 12-yard score to rookie John Brown with 2:25 left to play. Michael Floyd caught five passes for 119 yards on the night for Arizona.
The Cardinals led 6-3 at half behind two field goals from Chandler Catanzaro.
Philip Rivers hit Malcom Floyd for a 6-yard touchdown to give the Chargers the lead.
Jerry Attaochu sacked Palmer, forced a fumble and recovered the fumble to give the Chargers another possession in Arizona territory. Ryan Mathews scored for 20 yards out to convert the turnover into points and give the Chargers a 17-6 lead through three quarters.
Carson Palmer found running back Stepfan Taylor in the front corner of the endzone for a 5-yard touchdown to pull within a score early in the fourth quarter.
The Cardinals then had a head scratching moment while attempting the two-point conversation to pull within a field goal. They gave the ball to Jonathan Dwyer out of a wildcat formation as he attempted to rush the ball into the endzone. Instead, Dwyer was stuffed by the Chargers defense to preserve a 17-12 lead.
San Diego answered with a drive that seemed destined to extend the lead once again when a third down snap went past Rivers, who had to fall on the ball and led to a punt.
Larry Fitzgerald’s streak of 149 straight games with a reception seemed in jeopardy. He wasn’t targeted once in the first three quarters but finally got a catch under his belt with just over four minutes left to play.
Palmer scrambled for a 12-yard gain on 3rd and 10 deep in their own territory to extend the Cardinals’ ensuing possession. After moving into San Diego territory, Palmer connected with Michael Floyd for 16 yards on 3rd and 9 to move into the Chargers red zone. On the next play, Palmer threw a screen pass to rookie receiver John Brown who weaved his way into the endzone for a 12-yard touchdown to give Arizona the lead.
Another failed two-point conversation left the Cardinals nursing a 18-17 lead with 2:25 left to play.
The Cardinals brought the house defensively on three straight plays and Rivers couldn’t capitalize as San Diego failed to convert a fourth down opportunity to extend their final drive.