TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) Arizona”s slumbering offense came alive against the winless Detroit Lions.
Jake Plummer passed for 334 yards and four touchdowns, two to David Boston, as the Cardinals rallied from 10 points down in the fourth quarter yesterday to beat the hard-luck Lions 45-38.
It was the sixth time in a row that Detroit has lost by a touchdown or less.
Plummer, who matched his career best in touchdown passes set as a rookie in 1997, led the Cardinals to a fourth-quarter comeback for the 14th time in his career and second time this season. He completed 21 of 33 and was intercepted once.
Arizona (3-6) had just 13 touchdowns in its first eight games and hadn”t scored this many points in a game since a 45-42 victory over Washington on Nov. 22, 1998.
Kwamie Lassiter deflected one pass that was intercepted and picked off two more for the Cardinals all in the fourth quarter. He has seven picks this season.
Frank Sanders caught seven passes for 127 yards, including a 68-yarder for a touchdown, the Cardinals” longest play of the season.
Charlie Batch threw for a franchise record 436 yards. He completed 36 of 62 for three touchdowns but was intercepted three times in the fourth quarter. Batch”s 6-yarder to Lamont Warren cut the lead to 45-38 with 4:11 remaining.
The Lions (0-9) got the ball at their own 26 with 3:29 to play and moved to the 50, but Batch overthrew David Sloan and Lassiter picked it off.
Detroit had one more chance after Terry Fair”s 23-yard punt return gave the Lions the ball at their 35 with 23 seconds to go. Batch completed two passes to the 50. But his next pass fell incomplete in a crowd in the end zone, and the other sailed out of bounds as the game ended.
Detroit led 31-21 after three quarters, but the Cardinals scored the next 24 points, including three touchdowns in a span of four minutes, seven seconds. Bill Gramatica”s 50-yard field goal made it 45-31 with 6:32 remaining.