The Miami Dolphins, trying to stay in playoff contention after last week’s disappointing loss to the Baltimore Ravens, had to finish out their Week 14 game against the Arizona Cardinals without their starting quarterback.

Ryan Tannehill limped off the field with 1:46 left in the third quarter and the Dolphins up 21-15. Tannehill was hit low by Arizona’s Calais Campbell as he threw for DeVante Parker. Campbell was not flagged on the play.

He returned to the sideline a short time later in street clothes. Andy Slater from WINZ-AM in Miami tweeted that Tannehill suffered an “ACL injury” and is out for the season. Miami coach Adam Gase told reporters the initial concern for the fifth-year player is that he tore his ACL.

Matt Moore, Tannehill’s backup, finished the game and completed 3 of 5 passes, getting the Dolphins in position to attempt the game-winning field goal with just one second left. Andrew Franks converted from just 21 yards out to give the Dolphins the 26-23 win, upping their record to 8-5.

But despite the Denver Broncos losing to the Tennessee Titans, Miami remains in seventh in the AFC playoffs, one spot out of the playoffs. Though both teams are 8-5, it appears that the Broncos remain in the sixth spot for now because they have a better record against the common opponents – Miami is 1-2, while Denver is 2-1 – which is the third tiebreaker. They have not played head-to-head and have the same 5-4 record against conference opponents.

As the Dolphins have won seven of their last eight games, Tannehill has been playing the best football of his career, with 13 touchdowns against five interceptions; three of those picks came in the loss to Baltimore last week.

Not surprisingly, as Tannehill has played better, Miami fans, who have been highly critical of the 2012 first-round draft pick, have become more appreciative of him. That showed in the ovation he received as he walked off the field and into the tunnel during the game: