Cardinals pounce on Dallas error for OT win

ARIZONA scored a touchdown off a blocked punt to finish off a wild 30-24 overtime victory over Dallas on Sunday as the NFL produced a flurry of frenetic endings.

The Cardinals’ Sean Morey blocked a punt and Monty Beisel recovered the ball and stepped into the end zone.

It was the first time in NFL history that an overtime game ended with a blocked punt for a touchdown.

“I can’t remember one that was this crazy, especially towards the end,” Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner said.

“That topped off an incredible game,” Beisel said. “Special teams stepped up and we made the difference.”

Added Morey: “I was really fortunate to get the opportunity. They don’t come around too often and I wanted to make sure I smothered it and finished the play.”

Warner threw for 236 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. But Arizona blew a 10-point lead with just over three minutes left in regulation. Tony Romo threw for 321 yards and three scores and Nick Folk hit a game-tying 52-yard field goal for Dallas to force overtime.

While Dallas won the coin toss, they were unable to get a first down. Morey burst through the line and blocked Matt McBriar’s punt, which Beisel recovered at the one-yard line and hustled into the end zone for the touchdown.

Cowboys running back Marion Barber was held to 45 yards on the ground, but caught 11 passes for 128 yards — including a 70-yard touchdown catch-and-run that began a Dallas rally.

The Cowboys pulled within 24-21 with 2:17 remaining on Barber’s score. Arizona’s ensuing drive stalled when DeMarcus Ware sacked Warner on 3rd-and-7, giving him a sack in nine straight games.

The Cardinals were forced to punt with 1:01 remaining, and Adam Jones’ return gave Dallas the ball at the 30-yard line. On 3rd-and-11, Romo hit Jason Witten for 30 yards to the Arizona 40, and the Cowboys spiked the ball to stop the clock with three seconds left.

However, Arizona had an injured player on the field during the spike, and after talking among themselves, the officials eventually ruled he was offside, and the ball was moved up five yards to the 35 — giving Dallas’ Folk his chance to tie the game.

The Cardinals blocked Folk’s initial 52-yard attempt, but Arizona had called a timeout before the play so it didn’t count. On his second try, Folk drilled the game-tying field goal.

There was a setback, too, for the Cowboys NFC East rivals Washington, as St Louis’ Kris Brown nailed a 49-yard field goal as time expired to give the Rams their first victory of the season, a 19-17 triumph over the Redskins.

In Minneapolis, Ryan Longwell kicked a 26-yard field goal with nine seconds left to lift Minnesota to a 12-10 victory over Detroit.

The field goal was set up after a dubious interference penalty against cornerback Leigh Bodden gave the Vikings a first down deep in Lions territory, although replays appeared to show that Bodden didn’t make contact with receiver Aundrae Allison.

Atlanta’s Jason Elam kicked a game-winning field goal as time expired, lifting the Falcons to a 22-20 victory over Chicago.

In Houston, the Texans narrowly nabbed their first win of the season as Matt Schaub scored on a quarterback draw with three seconds left to seal a 29-28 victory over the Miami Dolphins.

Philadelphia scored 23 points in the fourth quarter to engineer a 40-26 victory over the San Francisco 49ers that snapped the Eagles’ two-game losing streak.

No late-game heroics were needed by Indianapolis as Peyton Manning threw three touchdown passes in the first half en route to the Colts’ 31-3 victory over the Baltimore Ravens.

Indianapolis, who had to rally from double-digit deficits in their previous two victories this season, put together consecutive wins for the first time in 2008.

Philip Rivers threw for 306 yards and three touchdowns as San Diego dismantled New England 30-10 in a rematch of last season’s AFC championship game.

Tampa Bay dominated Carolina 27-3 to pull into a tie in the NFC South division. New Orleans thumped Oakland 34-3.

The New York Jets beat Cincinnati 26-14, the Bengals remaining without a win this season. Green Bay snapped a three-game losing streak with a 27-17 victory over Seattle, and Jacksonville defeated Denver 24-17.