Arizona Cardinals: 3 takeaways from week 12

What we learned about the Cardinals:

1. They can win ugly if they have to, which was certainly the case in their 19-13 victory Sunday against the last-place 49ers. "Any time you get a division opponent on the road, I think the main goal is to get the win," Cardinals free safety Tyrann Mathieu said. "If it's ugly or pretty, it really doesn't matter. Got a lot of stuff to correct, a lot of stuff to work on."

2. Quarterback Carson Palmer needs to work on his celebratory spike before he runs for another touchdown. After he scrambled seven yards for a tie-breaking touchdown late in the fourth quarter Sunday, Palmer spiked the ball so hard that he fell down hard and rolled. "I'm taking a lot of heat for that, and I could care less," Palmer said. Mathieu said Palmer had his teammates laughing -- nervously. "We thought he hurt himself," Mathieu said. "Obviously to get a go-ahead touchdown on the road, it creates a lot of emotion, a lot of energy."

3. The Cardinals have reason for concern when it comes to their running game. Arizona rushed for only 31 yards on 14 carries in the first half. Then in the third quarter, starting running back Chris Johnson (left knee) and backup Andre Ellington (foot) sustained injuries, leaving their status for Arizona's next game at St. Louis in doubt. Rookie running back David Johnson carried the load for most of the second half and finished the game with 21 yards on eight carries.

Etc.:

--RB Chris Johnson left the game Sunday against San Francisco with an injury to his left knee. "It doesn't look like anything too major," Johnson said. "We're going to watch it and see how I feel tomorrow."

--CB Jerraud Powers sustained a calf injury midway through the third quarter Sunday against San Francisco and did not return. "Hopefully it is just a calf strain and not an Achilles," Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said. "We first thought it was an Achilles."

--QB Carson Palmer completed 24 of 40 passes for 271 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions in a 19-13 victory against San Francisco. He also scrambled seven yards for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter, giving the Cardinals their six-point lead.