Tramaine Brock saw the path to the end zone and imagined the glory, but he forgot the football.
The Cardinals' cornerback had a chance for a game-winning interception in overtime on Sunday afternoon but a Matt Stafford throw slipped right through his fingers. Five seconds later, the game ended in a 27-27 tie.
"I saw the ball and I knew I had a chance to pick it," Brock said. "I looked in the end zone. It was just one of those mistakes. Looking in the end zone, not focusing and keeping my eyes on the ball."
Brock had a couple of ways he could have helped the Cardinals win the game had the interception happened. The first was to return it for a score, and the other was to step out of bounds around the Detroit 32 to set up a field goal.
"I think I would have tried (to score)," Brock said.
While his final play didn't go well, Brock made a big play earlier in overtime. The Cardinals led 27-24 but a touchdown by the Lions would have won the contest. Brock was in single coverage and knocked a pass away from Kenny Golladay on third down to force a Detroit field goal.
Brock did a good job of timing his leap to avoid pass interference.
"I had to come up and make a play," Brock sad. "You've got to look at him, look at the ball and time it up."
The cornerbacks held up pretty well in the contest without the services of starters Patrick Peterson (suspension) and Robert Alford (leg). Stafford finished 27-of-45 for 385 yards and three touchdowns but tight end T.J. Hockenson did much of the damage, catching six passes for 131 yards against mostly safeties and linebackers.
Rookie Byron Murphy and second-year corner Chris Jones did not look overwhelmed, and Murphy showed impressive physicality for a defensive back when ball-carriers were near him.
"I've always liked to tackle," Murphy said. "This week in practice, we emphasized corners setting the edge. They were going to make our corners tackle."
JUSTIN MURRAY GETS THE NOD AT RIGHT TACKLE
The Cardinals went with Justin Murray at right tackle in place of the injured Marcus Gilbert. Murray was acquired on waivers one week ago and was thrust into the lineup after Gilbert went down Thursday with a knee injury.
"I finally had the opportunity to go out there and start, and I just tried my best," said Murray, who is on his sixth team in three years. "The coaches took extra time to get me ready. They stayed with me after practice, hammering the game plan, and I studied on my own. Just to have the opportunity like this, the whole team believed in me, and I was very excited."
Coach Kliff Kingsbury said he did not consider using guard Justin Pugh or guard/center Mason Cole at right tackle. He said Murray was claimed to be used in a situation like this.
"We kind of crammed the game plan, and he really took pride in learning it and getting up to speed," Kingsbury said. "I thought he held up nicely."
DAVID JOHNSON LAMENTS MISSED TOUCHDOWN
Running back David Johnson had a chance to get into the end zone in the second quarter, but stepped out of bounds inside the 1. It proved to be costly, as the Cardinals settled for a field goal three plays later.
He finished the game with 18 carries for 82 yards, six catches for 55 yards and a 27-yard scoring reception, but dwelled on the missed score after the game.
"I feel terrible," Johnson said. "It wouldn't have been a tie if I would have scored that first one from the jump. That would have given us a lot more momentum. I could have done literally anything except run out of bounds. I should have scored that one."
