Cardinals win first playoff game James Madison was president

Experience trumped inexperience. The running game trumped the passing game. That’s playoff football, right? Not exactly. Two-time MVP Kurt Warner outfoxing rookie Matt Ryan wasn’t surprising Saturday in an NFC wild-card game at University of Phoenix Stadium. But this was startling: The pass-happy Arizona Cardinals outran the run-crazy Atlanta Falcons, whose questionable strategy to abandon the run early and pass proved costly in a 30-24 loss. – From Fox Sports

While driving to work early Thursday morning, Cardinals defensive tackle Darnell Dockett felt tears welling in his eyes as he peered through the tinted windows of his Mercedes sedan. The Cardinals’ first playoff game in a decade was still two days away, but the thought of playing on the postseason stage for the first time in his career was almost too much for fifth-year pro to stand. With his heart racing seemingly as fast as car, Dockett took a couple of deep breaths and told himself to relax. – From AP

It had been 3 cities and 61 years since the Cardinals hosted a playoff game. But if there was anyone outside their locker room who believed they would beat the Atlanta Falcons, the search to locate them might have required many more towns and just as much time. Oddsmakers listed Arizona as a home underdog; pundits mostly picked in favor of a Falcons team with a rookie quarterback and a rookie head coach; and even their fans had their doubts. The Cardinals needed an extension from the N.F.L. to sell enough tickets to prevent the game’s broadcast from being blacked out locally. As it turned out, the Cardinals’ faith in themselves was not blind. – From NY Times