James Conner had made the most important play, part one, when he knocked the ball out of the hands of Chargers defensive lineman Teair Tart after Tart's first-quarter interception Monday night. But Michael Wilson had the most important play, part two, when he managed to race full speed and outmaneuver Chargers defensive back Cam Hart to fall on the ball.

It was bad enough Hart landed on Wilson. But then defensive lineman Otito Ogbonnia, all 320 pounds of him, jumped on Wilson (a little late, maybe?) as Wilson covered up the ball.

"Honestly I didn't realize how bad it was until I got a chance to look at it after," Wilson said. "I'm lucky I didn't break a rib. He was running full speed and fell on me. I'm fortunate I was able to walk away from that with minimal hurting of my body."

Coach Jonathan Gannon raved about the effort of not only Conner and Starling Thomas V had in their forced fumbles on Monday but also the recoveries of Wilson and tight end Trey McBride (who fell on a Conner fumble when the Cardinals were on offense, preserving a TD drive.)

Those scrambles aren't for the faint of heart. Or for bodies who aren't steeled for the impact.

McBride ended up getting pummeled by three of his own teammates jumping on him for the ball when he made his recovery, but "good things happen when you are around the football," he said.

"I jumped on it so fast, I tried to stand up hoping those guys wouldn't jump on me," McBride said. "That's definitely a circumstance, but getting the ball is way more important than worrying about that."

-- This is a huge game for both the Cardinals – who are in the mix in a jumbled NFC West – and the Dolphins, who believe they can salvage the season with the return of QB Tua Tagovailoa. The Tua difference: The Dolphins threw for 319 yards in the one game he played in its entirety. The next game, when he went out early with his concussion, until now – the Dolphins have passed for 151.6 yards a game.

-- Conner has 100-yard rushing performances in five of his last nine games. The Cardinals will need that Sunday against one of the best pass defenses in the NFL. Oh, and Conner became the first player ever to have 100 yards rushing, 50 yards receiving and a forced fumble in a game, when he did it against the Chargers.

-- The Cardinals will be missing their top four defensive linemen: Justin Jones, Bilal Nichols, Roy Lopez and Darius Robinson. And two of their top three outside linebackers in BJ Ojulari and Dennis Gardeck.

-- As the Cardinals work to unlock their passing game they are getting good pass protection. The Cardinals haven't allowed a sack in two games and only 11 on the season – tied for fifth-best in the league. The last time the Cards went two games without allowing a sack was 2015.

"I know it's always hard for a defense to plan to pass rush against (jersey) No. 1," center Hjalte Froholdt said. "Kyler is definitely a problem for a lot of people to gameplan against. He has helped us in a bunch of situations. Everyone has just taken to heart that we are going to do our best in every situation, and I'm going to try and win my one-on-ones. The guys are doing a great job up front but also the backs in protection, receivers getting open, all those things help in protection."

-- They will need it. The Dolphins have generated an NFL-best 43.6 percent pressure rate on opposing quarterbacks this season, and have the quickest average time to pressure with 2.46 seconds.

-- Speaking of looking at the passing game, Kurt Warner really does belong in a classroom.

-- The Cardinals will wear their home red uniforms on Sunday, not a surprise with the Dolphins choosing their white uniforms for the Miami heat and humidity. The forecast for game day is a high of 82, with 60 percent humidity.

-- Calais Campbell, good to see you again. The veteran defensive end, the Cardinals' second-round pick in 2008(!), is still motoring along in his career while in his first season with the Dolphins. Since leaving the Cardinals after the 2016 season he has played for the Jaguars, Ravens and Falcons before taking his talents to South Beach. He was asked about the Cardinals this week by Miami reporters.

"A lot of good memories at that place," Campbell said. "I don't know what my best memory was. I'd have to think on that. My rookie year, going to the Super Bowl, was pretty sweet. It's hard to beat that. Winning the NFC Championship game at home against the Eagles and the confetti falling on your shoulders and everyone is super hyped, that's the feeling I'm chasing. Definitely a lot of love for the Arizona Cardinals fans. The organization treated me very well when I was there, lot of love for them, and now I'm getting ready to compete against them."

-- Aaron Brewer v Aaron Brewer? Yes, this week, we have the dream matchup. "It has been brought to my attention there is another one," said the Cardinals' Aaron Brewer, the team's long snapper. CAB (as we will call him for this note) said there are times, through the league's social media sharing platform, that he has received pictures of the Dolphins’ Aaron Brewer, and he is sure DAB(!) has gotten some of his.

DAB is a center, but on offense. So the same, but different. "It's a different kind of center," CAB said.

"That's cool though," said Aaron Brewer of Arizona. "Maybe I'll say hi to him. Maybe I'll yell out, 'Aaron Brewer!'

"There can only be one though. Like Highlander."

-- Speaking of old-school Cardinals, trips to Miami are few and far between. This is only the team's third visit since 2004. How much time has passed? It was a rookie Larry Fitzgerald that caught the game-winning TD pass with 19 seconds left in a 24-23 win to give the Cardinals their most recent win in Miami.

-- Budda Baker, asked again about the nearing trade deadline, again said he's not paying attention to that.

"I'm here, I'm excited, I'm happy," he said.

-- Tight end Elijah Higgins was drafted by the Dolphins and when he was cut as a rookie last year at the end of the preseason, the Cardinals claimed him off waivers. He has turned into an important part of the offense. This game, he is more looking forward to seeing family that live in Florida, but "any time you leave a team or a team gets rid of you, there's always a little chip on your shoulder."

At the time he changed teams though, he admitted he didn't really understand what was happening.

"I didn't know what it meant to be claimed by a team," Higgins said. "I was rolling with the punches, and going where they told me to go."

-- The four Cardinals' losses have come to three 5-2 teams and one 5-1 team.

-- The last word goes to cornerback Starling Thomas V, who said his phone blew up from family and friends back home after his dramatic forced fumble changed the complexion of the game Monday night against the Chargers.

"It was a great play. Shoutout God."

See you Sunday.