MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. _ Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who has endured questions about his long-term viability his entire career, has rarely been appreciated more than he was Sunday against Arizona.
Tannehill, booed earlier in the season for lackluster plays, left the field with a left knee injury late in the third quarter and didn't return.
But the Dolphins, under the direction of backup quarterback Matt Moore, conjured up more homefield magic and won the turnover-filled game, 26-23, when kicker Andrew Franks hit a 21-yard field goal as time expired.
The victory kept the Dolphins' playoff hopes alive and extended their home winning streak to five consecutive games.
Denver's 13-10 loss at Tennessee helped the Dolphins greatly because it dropped the Dolphins and Broncos into a tie at 8-5, but the Dolphins have the tiebreaker edge right now because they have a 6-4 conference record compared to a 5-4 conference record for Denver.
Moore (3 of 5 passing, 47 yards) saved the day by hitting wide receiver Kenny Stills for a 29-yard gain with 37 seconds left to the Cardinals' 1-yard line.
Still, the big concern for the Dolphins is Tannehill, who left with the Dolphins holding a 21-9 lead and returned to the sideline with about five minutes to go in the game. At one point he appeared to have watery eyes. He ended 15 of 20 for 195 yards, three touchdowns and one interception for a 124.0 passer rating.
Fans honored Tannehill, the NFL most sacked quarterback since entering the league in 2012 with 212 sacks, with applause as he walked into the lockerroom accompanied by team medical personnel.
But while that was going to Cardinals were gathering their long-lost mojo.
Quarterback Carson Palmer went to work. Palmer hit running back David Johnson for the two-point conversion to tie the game at 23 with 3:01 remaining after hitting wide receiver J.J. Nelson on an 8-yard touchdown pass. The Cardinals went 50 yards in seven plays, using 2:13.
The Cardinals had to attempt the two-point conversion because they had a bizarre exchange after their first fourth-quarter touchdown.
Palmer hit wide receiver Brittan Golden on a 9-yard touchdown pass to cut the Cardinals' deficit to 21-15 but Dolphins defensive tackle Jordan Phillips blocked the extra point attempt and safety Walt Aikens returned it for two points to give the Dolphins a 23-15 advantage.
The Dolphins held a 14-9 halftime lead even though they didn't play a great half statistically.
The Cardinals rushed for 131 yards on 17 carries in the first half, exceeding the Dolphins' single-game average of 130.3 yards per game, which ranked 30th in the NFL.
Turnovers (five) were a story in the first quarter and the first half (six). The Cardinals had three (two interceptions and a lost fumble) first-quarter turnovers while the Dolphins had two (interception, lost fumble).
Tannehill lost a fumble on a center exchange at the Cardinals' 2-yard line and threw an interception on a pass intended for wide receiver Kenny Stills.
Palmer threw two interceptions _ one pass was picked off by middle linebacker Mike Hull after it was tipped by Bobby McCain, and the other was picked off by safety Baccari Rambo _ and defensive end Terrence Fede and linebacker Spencer Paysinger had fumble recoveries.
The Cardinals cut their deficit to 14-9 after kicker Chandler Catanzaro, who had already missed an extra point and a 41-yard field goal attempt wide left, hit a 56-yard field goal.
The Dolphins went ahead, 14-6, after tight end Dion Sims caught a 7-yard touchdown pass after Arizona narrowed its deficit to 7-6 on a 56-yard reverse by wide receiver J.J. Nelson. The extra point was wide left, however.
The Dolphins took a 7-0 lead when Tannehill hit Stills on a 28-yard touchdown pass four plays after Hull's interception. Stills ran a beautiful double move on cornerback Marcus Cooper to catch a perfectly-thrown pass from Tannehill.
The Dolphins kept their Hard Rock Stadium good fortune going early. Hull's interception gave the Dolphins a plus-seven takeaway/giveaway margin during the last four-plus home games.
The Dolphins have all division opponents remaining, visiting the New York Jets at 8:25 p.m. Saturday, then visiting Buffalo the following Saturday (Christmas Eve) before the season finale against New England on Jan. 1.
