Arizona stuns favored Carolina

Arizona defensive end Antonio Smith, wearing a smile from here to Phoenix, engaged in some lighthearted trash talk with Carolina Panthers fans and flexed his muscles as he exited Bank of America Stadium.

“We shocked the world,” he said. The Cardinals certainly shocked the favored Panthers and their quarterback, Jake Delhomme

Arizona forced six Delhomme turnovers, and the Cardinals’ Larry Fitzgerald set a franchise playoff record with 166 receiving yards in a 33-13 divisional playoff upset victory Saturday night.

After winning the weak NFC West with a 9-7 mark, the fourth-seeded Cardinals seemed to disregard records and statistics as they became the last NFC team to make the conference final since the merger.

They will face the winner of today’s Philadelphia Eagles-New York Giants game next Sunday.

“Being 10-point underdogs was an insult,” Smith said. Being called “the worst team in the playoffs was an insult. I don’t think that anybody who made those comments watched the film of the first game we played” against Carolina.

The Cardinals entered 0-5 this season in the Eastern time zone and were up against a Carolina team they had failed to beat five straight times. They didn’t have Pro Bowl receiver Anquan Boldin, out because of a hamstring injury.

Not to mention the Panthers were undefeated at home during the regular season.

But overmatched? Not exactly.

Onetime Super Bowl most valuable player Kurt Warner engineered an unusually balanced offensive attack, completing 21 of 32 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns.

The Cardinals also rushed for 145 yards in 43 carries, paced by Tim Hightower’s 76 in 17 rushes. Warner threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Hightower and also found Fitzgerald for a 29-yard score, both in the first quarter.

“When Kurt is calm, cool, and collected, it trickles down to all of us,” said Cardinals left tackle Mike Gandy. “He has been in big playoff games. He has carried this team this whole year.”

But the defense made sure Warner didn’t have to do it alone.

The Cardinals forced three first-half turnovers by Delhomme that translated into 17 points and caused the home fans to boo their team during the disastrous opening half.

After spotting Carolina a touchdown, the Cardinals responded immediately. Warner drove them 60 yards in six plays, highlighted by a 41-yard pass to Fitzgerald.

A heavy rainfall started then stopped right at the end of the first quarter, maybe symbolic of the downpour of problems the Panthers had to endure. It started with Delhomme getting stripped of the ball by Smith at his own 14. Smith fell on the ball, setting up Edgerrin James for an easy four-yard touchdown run.

On the Panthers’ next drive, Delhomme fired a pass intended for no one in particular, and Cardinals rookie Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie intercepted it. He returned it 19 yards, helping set up Neil Rackers’ 49-yard field goal.

Delhomme telegraphed a pass to Muhsin Muhammad that linebacker Gerald Hayes picked off. Warner turned that gift into a 29-yard touchdown pass to Fitzgerald.

Delhomme threw his third interception to Antrel Rolle, and his 45-yard return set up Rackers’ 33-yard field goal.

That’s 20 points off turnovers.

Not exactly the way to celebrate a 34th birthday for Delhomme, who finished 17 for 34 for 205 yards with those five interceptions.

“For one reason or another,” Delhomme said, “I didn’t give us a chance tonight.”

--

vxmcclure@tribune.com