TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) -Kurt Warner has been on a roll before. This one is among the best of his career. Statistically, it might be the best of anyone’s career.
The 38-year-old quarterback’s numbers over his last four games match a level of excellence only accomplished before by Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas.
Warner had his fourth consecutive passer rating of more than 120 in the Cardinals’ 30-17 victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday night. Only Unitas, in 1965, had done that. When Arizona plays at San Francisco on Monday night, Warner has a chance to be the first to top 120 in five games in a row.
Passer ratings are somewhat nebulous numbers determined by a complicated formula. Warner’s simple statistics are easier to comprehend.
eptions. His passer rating during that stretch is 133.2.
“That dude’s good, man,” Arizona running back Tim Hightower said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for him. He’s one of the best if not the best at what he does in this game, and I don’t know if he gets as much credit as he probably does deserve.”
Warner downplays his recent success.
“It doesn’t feel any different to me than the way I normally play,” he said after Thursday’s practice. “There are times when things go in your direction. We’re playing well. Guys are making plays. We’re confident in what we’re doing.”
Arizona won all four of the games during Warner’s streak – against Chicago, Seattle, St. Louis and Minnesota. The Cardinals lost the one Warner sat out while recovering from a concussion – 20-17 at Tennessee.
For the first time in his 12 NFL seasons, he has gone four games – 121 passes – without an interception.
“It’s out of this world,” wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald said. “He’s playing at an MVP caliber level now. He’s really directing this ship, really directing this offense, and he’s amazing, man. To be 38 years old and playing at this level now is astonishing.”
Warner’s recent success coincides with the increased effectiveness of Arizona’s running game. The Cardinals topped 100 yards on the ground in each of those four games. That has cleared the way for play-action passes downfield.
of playmakers, a lot of weapons on this offense,” Hightower said, “and it shows when you give guys like Kurt time, he can pick any defense apart. Anything we can do to take pressure off of him and also make this offense multidimensional, it puts a lot of pressure on a defense.”
It certainly helps to have his receiving trio of Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and Steve Breaston healthy. Boldin was nursing a sore hamstring and Breaston was sidelined with a knee injury when the Cardinals were beaten by the 49ers at home 20-16 in their season opener, Arizona’s only loss to an NFC West foe in two seasons.
“He puts us in the position to be successful,” Fitzgerald said. “He knows the routes that Q likes to run. He knows what Steve is good at. He knows what my strengths are. You know if you run your routes and you beat your man, Kurt’s going to find you.”
Warner needs three touchdown passes to join Fran Tarkenton as the only NFL players to throw at least 100 TDs with two teams. This season, Warner became the only player in league history to have 14,000 yards passing with two teams.
Those statistics illustrate a point of pride for Warner, that he has helped lead two franchises – the St. Louis Rams and Arizona Cardinals – from oblivion to the Super Bowl. The Cardinals, once the laughingstock of the league, can clinch their second straight NFC West title with a win at San Francisco.
“To be a part of two organizations and flip the tables like that,” Warner said, “will definitely be one of the things that I will be most proud of when my career is over.”
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