TEMPE, Arizona (Ticker) -- The Arizona Cardinals had Brett Favre dreaming of chilly days at Lambeau Field.
Super Bowl MVP Dexter Jackson intercepted Favre in the end zone with two seconds remaining to seal the Cardinals' first win of the season, a 20-13 triumph over the Green Bay Packers.
With temperatures reaching 106 degrees in the fourth quarter, Favre tried to rally the Packers (1-2). He moved them 68 yards to the Arizona 7 in the final minute, then threw two incompletions in the end zone. On 3rd-and-goal, Jackson stepped in front of a pass intended for tight end Bubba Franks and returned it to his own 15.
"I knew (Favre) wasn't going to the right," said Jackson, who signed with Arizona after coming up with two interceptions for Tampa Bay in Super Bowl XXXVII. "He gave a little pump and made people bite, but I saw Bubba Franks break and I was able to break on the ball."
"They know you need to score and they are going to play a zone and you don't have much room, so it's a tight window," Favre said. "The safety (Jackson) picked it off. He's only got, what, 15 yards to defend, really only 10 'cause up until the goal line, they're fine."
Favre fell to 12-18 lifetime when the game-time temperature is 70 degrees or higher.
"It was definitely hot, but that had no bearing, I don't think," said Favre, who completed 23-of-33 passes for 245 yards. "I mean, it was hot and it was hot for those guys, too. They got beat 38-0 here last week and I'm sure it was just as hot. So we can't use that as an excuse."
While Favre refused to use the heat as an excuse, Cardinals quarterback Jeff Blake said he thought the Packers' defense was wearing down.
"If you can sustain 12- or 15-play drives, that will wear anybody down," Blake said. "We were wearing ourselves down. I know I was tired. I'm tired now just talking to you (reporters)."
The Cardinals (1-2) took the lead with 4:59 remaining on a one-yard touchdown toss from Blake to 270-pound fullback James Hodgins. It capped a 68-yard drive that started with a 28-yard pass interference penalty on cornerback Al Harris.
"We had the big pass interference call, which really helped us out," Blake said. "We were able to run the ball pretty good down there and got down close enough to the end zone."
The go-ahead touchdown followed a play fake to Emmitt Smith, who has rushed for more touchdowns than anyone in NFL history.
"Emmitt was in the backfield and they knew we were going to run the ball," Blake said. "I just faked it to him and found James Hodgins in the end zone. I could have had two guys wide open, Freddie (Jones) and James. James was the closest though."
Bothered by a bruised left heel, Blake completed 20-of-31 passes for 273 yards with a TD and an interception.
"Jeff Blake is a warrior," Cardinals coach Dave McGinnis said. "Confidence runs throughout his body. It's not false bravado, it's not false confidence. It's confidence that comes from a belief in himself and the people around him."
It was another big day for Arizona rookie Anquan Boldin, who caught five passes for 99 yards and set league records for receptions and yardage in his first three NFL games.
"The records don't mean much to me now," Boldin said. I am just helping the team win."
Fellow rookie Bryant Johnson added six catches for 86 yards.
"They continue to make plays," McGinnis said. "Both of those guys are quality football players and they're going to be even better. They're three games born into the National Football League, they're brand new. ... I couldn't be more proud of these two young kids."
Blake scored on a 1-yard keeper late in the first quarter to open the scoring. Linebacker Ray Thompson recovered a fumble by Ahman Green at the Packers' 39 to set up the touchdown.
It was one of two giveaways by Green Bay against an Arizona team that had a minus-9 turnover ratio in its first two games.
"We turned it over once today, but I promise you, there wasn't one ounce of 'Here we go again,'" McGinnis said. "All it was was 'Let's go get this done.' Our defense got the ball right back and then you saw what we were able to do."
The Packers tied it midway through the second quarter on a four-yard toss from Favre to reserve tight end David Martin.
Just under 5 1/2 minutes later, Ryan Longwell kicked a 40-yard field goal to give Green Bay its only lead, 10-7.
But Blake moved the Cardinals 77 yards in 65 seconds off the ensuing kickoff and Bill Gramatica forged a halftime tie with a 21-yard field goal.
Gramatica's 37-yard field goal was the only scoring in the third quarter, but Longwell answered with a 40-yarder 3:52 into the final period to tie it at 13-13.
A week after rushing for 160 yards in last week's win over Detroit, Green was held to 53 on 21 carries. He also was Favre's favorite target with six catches for 43 yards.
"(The Cardinals) played better, they deserved to win," Packers coach Mike Sherman said. "Their back was against the wall and they played like it. And they did what they had to do to win this football game, we didn't. We deserved to lose."
