TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) - Arizona coach Bruce Arians said he likes the way his team weathered the ups and downs of Monday night's come-from-behind victory against San Diego.
He also "really liked" the way the team came together in the fourth quarter, when the Cardinals rallied from an 11-point deficit to win 18-17.
"The one thing I was looking for on the sideline was somebody that was in disbelief, and I couldn't find one," Arians said at his Tuesday news conference. "I couldn't look in anybody's eyes that didn't think we were going to win that game in the fourth quarter. That's a really good feeling for a coach."
He thinks that attitude is a carry-over from last season, when Arizona won seven of its last nine, including a victory in Seattle, the lone home loss for the Seahawks in two seasons.
"What carries over from one year to the next, because we have a lot of new faces?" Arians said. "Well, the belief that we are good enough to get it done carried over, because it was there from the Seattle game and other games last year."
Carson Palmer was 8-for-12 for 85 yards and two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. He also lumbered for a first down on third-and-10 from his own 9-yard line on the game-winning drive. The run was part of a 10-play, 91-yard drive, capped by a 13-yard TD pass to rookie John Brown to put Arizona up by a point with 2:25 to go.
The drive also featured the lone reception of the night for Larry Fitzgerald. The 22-yard play kept alive Fitzgerald's string of a reception in 150 consecutive games. Fitzgerald was targeted only four times, but Arians made no apologies.
"We don't design plays for guys to get the ball," Arians said. "That's interceptions waiting to happen. You have guys go out and then whatever the coverage dictates, you get it. The coverage dictated he wasn't getting many. He was open a couple other times where we threw it somewhere else, but I'm not interested in anybody's numbers other than the W's. Those days are long gone."
Running back Andre Ellington played despite a painful injury to his left foot.
Arians said "it was a big step" for Ellington to play through pain and said it no doubt earned the respect of his teammates.
"Guys were patting him on the back left and right," the coach said. "He cramped up in the fourth quarter and was right back in it."
Ellington's longest run of the night - 18 yards - came in the winning drive.