The Associated Press

The Associated Press

TEMPE – When Arizona Cardinals coach Dave McGinnis said he’d try almost anything to change his team’s luck, he wasn’t kidding. Now he has Jake Plummer calling signals.

“It put a lot on Jake, and it put a lot on those young receivers early on to be able to do it, and they came through and did a nice job,” McGinnis said. “We’ll continue the next three weeks to keep it somewhere in our repertoire.”

The Cardinals (5-8) practiced a no-huddle offense last week and unveiled it Sunday against Detroit. They had to come from behind to tie in regulation and beat the lowly Lions 20-17 in overtime. After Arizona’s six-game losing streak that preceded the game, even that seemed like a great success.

Plummer gets the chance to call the plays tomorrow night at St. Louis.

McGinnis opted for the no-huddle to loosen up defenses that were stacking the line and daring the Cardinals to throw.

Part of the no-huddle equation was Plummer choosing plays on the field from a menu prepared by offensive coordinator Rich Olson.

“It was a little different from the no-huddle in the past, where (former coordinator Marc) Trestman was calling the plays. In this, I’m calling the plays I want,” Plummer said. “We have a set group of plays that the coaches know we want to run, and they’re kind of letting me take control out there. It’s a lot of fun – directing traffic, telling those guys where to go, mixing runs and passes. We were effective.”

Plummer was 24 of 43 for 228 yards and two touchdown against the Lions, his best game since the skid began Oct. 27 with a 38-28 loss to San Francisco.

Plummer, who led Arizona State to an undefeated regular season and the Rose Bowl in 1996, has never had free rein before.

“I’m just going to enjoy it,” Plummer said. “Like Geep Chryst, our quarterback coach, says, ‘You can’t call a perfect play. Just call a play that’s going to work.’ ”

Cardinals at Rams

Tomorrow, 6:30 p.m.

- TV: ESPN

- RADIO: KFFN-AM (1490)

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