Cardinals rally past Falcons to advance to divisional round
Associated Press - From NFL.com
Kurt Warner opened with a 42-yard touchdown pass to Larry Fitzgerald and connected with Anquan Boldin on a 71-yard scoring play as the Cardinals beat Atlanta 30-24 Saturday before a raucous, towel-waving crowd.
It was the franchise's first home playoff game since the then-Chicago Cardinals beat Philadelphia to win the NFL championship in 1947.
"A lot of people coming into this game said we were the worst playoff team ever to get in," Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "... I think we rallied around that."
Atlanta rookie Matt Ryan was intercepted twice, was tackled in the end zone for a safety and fumbled the ball away on a botched handoff. That fumble was returned 27 yards by Antrel Rolle 52 seconds into the second half to put Arizona ahead for good.
Everyone knew the Cardinals could pass, but a stout defense and effective running game were a bonus.
"You have to really give credit first to their defense," Falcons guard Harvey Dahl said. "They did an outstanding job. They were flying all over the place."
Atlanta's 60 yards rushing represented a season low.
"We couldn't run the ball," Falcons wide receiver Roddy White said. "We had to throw it around a little bit more than we're used to. Things like that kind of put us behind the eight-ball."
"They controlled the line of scrimmage," Falcons coach Mike Smith said of the Cardinals' defense.
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