The Kind of Win the Cardinals Needed

Tony K. and my Aunt Edna Ron Jaworski spent the better part of Monday night saying that the Cardinals needed a huge victory to send a message to the rest of the NFL that they were legitimate title contenders.

Horse (expletive).

Nobody would have cared if the Cardinals would have blown out the 49ers, as they would have chided the competition. No, the Cardinals needed one of those, "Oh boy, how and the hell did they win" kind of win. They needed one of those games that they pulled out of their bungs.

Because this was the kind of game they would have lost in the recent past. Even last season. This was setting up for a Dennis Green-like meltdown. Put they pulled out it.

And to be fair, this was a huge trap game for them. The 49ers were embarrassed in Mike Singletary's debut and -- following a bye week -- they were primed for a huge game. That's what really bugged me about the pre-game hype. Nobody talked about this. They just wrote off San Francisco because of its performance two weeks ago. How do people who are paid to watch football not see this unfolding?

Sometimes the experts are the biggest dopes.

However, this win shows that the Cardinals do have luck on their side. Especially in the dome. And when you look at the standings, there is a chance -- if the Birds can do their business -- that they could grab the No. 2 seed. The NFC South figures to knock each other down, as does the NFC North. The Birds could cost into the playoffs on a flimsy 12-4 mark and host a second-round game. The Cowboys and 49ers would attest that playing there isn't easy.