The Green Bay Packers have shown vulnerabilty as of late. The NFC East is a mess. The defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks are hovering at .500. What a perfect time for the Arizona Cardinals to establish themselves as a legit power in the conference.
Using a four-touchdown night by quarterback Carson Palmer to set the pace, the Cardinals staved off a late rally and put away the AFC North-leading Cincinnati Bengals thanks to a tie-breaking 32-yard field goal with seconds left by kicker Chandler Cantanzaro, 34-31. It's Cincinnati's second straight loss after starting the season a perfect 8-0.
Palmer had an up-and-down night, throwing two interceptions while passing for 317 yards to go with his aforementioned four scores. However, he made the big throws when the Cardinals needed him most, leading the Cardinals 70 yards in just over a minute to set up the winning kick with just a handful of seconds to go. Palmer hit JJ Nelson for 19 yards, then Larry Fitzgerald for gains of 18 and 20 to move into Cincinnati territory.
An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Bengals defensive tackle Domato Peko would give the Cardinals 15 extra yards and turn a long field goal into a 32-yard chip shot for Cantanzaro, effectively ending the game as Cincinnati could do nothing on the ensuing kickoff with two seconds remaining.
The late breakdown by the defense wasted a 17-3 run by the Bengals which erased a 28-14 Cardinals lead. QB Andy Dalton was the key to Cincinnati's comeback attempt, finishing 22 of 39 for 315 yards and two touchdowns. However, in a game that devolved into a good old-fashioned shootout, it was Carson Palmer and the Cardinals offense which had the last laugh.
Arizona moves to 8-2 on the year, three games clear of the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC West heading into next Sunday's game at San Francisco. Cincinnati falls to 8-2, two games ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers with a home game looming next week against St. Louis.
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