Arizona @ San Diego 3:15 p.m.

The first time the Cardinals played San Francisco this season — in the opener — Karlos Dansby was out. It was a bad time for Dansby, who had missed all of training camp with a toe injury and was feeling the wrath of coach Dennis Green, who was publicly unhappy with Dansby’s absence.

But a lot has changed since then, and despite a rocky beginning, the linebacker is closing out what turned out to be a productive year.

“Once I got healthy enough to play the game,” Dansby said, “I think I did a good job of playing at a high level.

“I never doubted myself. I just needed to figure out what (the injury) was.” READ MORE

Karlos logs 8 tackles, has 65 for season

The Cardinals reverted to form Sunday, and given their dubious history that's rarely a good thing.

The optimism generated by a two-game win streak - if you can call two games a streak - was smothered by a litany of mistakes that included poor pass coverage, bad throws, a dropped touchdown pass and costly penalties.

In losing to Denver 37-20, the Cardinals played like they did earlier this season when they went eight games and two months without a victory.

"We just have to play better," running back Edgerrin James said. "They are a team that is fighting for their playoff lives, and we knew they were going to come out strong today."

At 4-10, the Cardinals have recorded double-digit losses in 13 of 19 seasons in Arizona, including three straight under coach Dennis Green.

Denver, meanwhile, improved to 8-6 and kept its playoff hopes alive by snapping a four-game losing streak.

"We knew if we didn't win this game we were out of the playoffs," Denver coach Mike Shanahan said. "It was a do-or-die situation for us, and our guys came to play against a football team that has been playing very well." READ MORE