GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Phil Dawson kicked four field goals and the Arizona Cardinals intercepted Marcus Mariota twice in outlasting the Tennessee Titans 12-7 on Sunday.
Arizona (6-7) got two field goals from Dawson in the fourth quarter, the last from 35 yards out with 3:45 left to play. The kick came after Mariota's second interception of the game, as linebacker Josh Bynes picked off the pass over the middle.
"I know what everybody is going to say -- 'It's an ugly win,'" Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians said. "There is no such thing. I couldn't be prouder of the character of the men in that locker room. We've never lost two in a row at home in five years, and very seldom have we lost two in a row because of the character that's in that room."
Dawson's 32-yard field goal with 5:59 remaining gave the Cardinals their first lead of the game at 9-7.
The Titans (8-5) had their two-game winning streak snapped and, with it, they fell to second place in the AFC South behind Jacksonville (9-4), which beat Seattle on Sunday.
Mariota was 16 of 31 for 159 yards with no touchdowns and the two interceptions. He injured his knee during a first-half run, and although it wasn't enough to knock him out of the game, it may have played a part in his ineffectiveness.
"Frustration is an understatement," Mariota said of his performance overall. "Defense played lights out. Special teams did their job. And I've been hurting our team. I've got to find ways to get better."
The Titans also lost left tackle Taylor Lewan in the first half to a back injury. He said he woke up with stiffness in his back and that it tightened up on him during the game.
Cardinals quarterback Blaine Gabbert was 17 of 26 for 178 yards with no touchdowns and no picks. He is now 2-2 as Arizona's starter since moving up the depth chart because of injuries to Carson Palmer and Drew Stanton.
The Titans sacked Gabbert eight times for 53 yards.
"Some of those were my fault," Gabbert said, adding when asked how his body feels, "I feel great. Everything feels better when you get a win."
The Cardinals held the Titans' two-pronged rushing attack of DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry to 54 total yards. Murray rushed 11 times for 34 yards while Henry had eight carries for 20 yards and a touchdown.
"We were definitely sound, defensively," Bynes said. "We were prepared for whatever they threw at us and once we got the gist of what they were trying to throw at us, everyone locked in and communicated so well. Everyone did their jobs today and communicated."
The Cardinals had a chance to take the lead following a Tramon Williams interception of a Mariota pass with less than two minutes remaining in the third quarter. The Cardinals drove the ball to the Tennessee 22 and set up for a field-goal attempt that would have given them a 9-7 lead.
However, Dawson's 40-yarder was wide right. It was his eighth missed field goal of the season, tying his career high when he also missed eight in 2006 while with the Cleveland Browns.
"It's inexcusable, but he made the next two," Arians said.
Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald caught five passes for 44 yards. With his 23-yard reception early in the third quarter, Fitzgerald surpassed Randy Moss (15,292) for third place on the NFL's all-time receiving yards list. Fitzgerald now has 15,311 career yards, behind only Terrell Owens (15,934) and Jerry Rice (22,895).
Trailing 7-3 midway through the third quarter, the Cardinals caught a break when the Titans faked a punt on fourth-and-1 from their own 35-yard line. Eric Weems took the direct snap and charged up the middle for what initially was ruled a first down.
Arians challenged the call on the field, and after a review and subsequent re-measure, the first down was overruled and the Cardinals got the ball back on downs.
Arizona moved to the Titans 3-yard line, but Kerwynn Williams was stuffed for a 2-yard loss and the Cardinals were forced to settle for a 23-yard field goal from Dawson.
Titans head coach Mike Mularkey said the punt fake wasn't executed correctly.
"No, it wasn't. You know what, we should have got it," he said. "I thought we had it. Both officials had the mark as a first down. I was standing right between them. I don't know how it got overturned."
Dawson connected on a 47-yard field goal earlier in the third quarter, capping a nine-play, 48-yard drive to open the second half.
Both teams struggled to get their offenses moving in the first half. The Cardinals punted on all five of their possessions, the Titans on each of their first three.
A 33-yard punt by Arizona's Andy Lee put Tennessee in decent field position early in the second quarter. The Titans then went 50 yards on nine plays, getting a 6-yard touchdown run from Henry for the only scoring in the half.
Tennessee (89) and Arizona (48) combined for just 137 total net yards through the first two quarters. The teams combined for just 44 rushing yards -- 31 by the Titans and 13 by the Cardinals.
Tennessee had a chance to tack onto its 7-0 lead right before halftime as Mariota completed four passes for 44 yards to move the ball to the Cardinals' 40-yard line. Ryan Succop, however, missed a 58-yard field goal with no time left on the clock. The kick was short, hitting the crossbar.
NOTES: The Titans were without LB Derrick Morgan (knee), who is leading the team in sacks with 7.5. ... WR John Brown missed his third straight game for the Cardinals because of a toe injury. ... The Titans are staying in the Phoenix area all week before flying to northern California next weekend to play the 49ers for their last road game of the regular season. ... With a 1-yard catch during Arizona's first possession of the game, Fitzgerald extended his streak of consecutive games with a reception to 208, which is three games shy of the second-longest streak in NFL history, held by Tony Gonzalez. Jerry Rice is first with a catch in 274 straight games.
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