As the football season gathers pace and nears its halfway mark, it is a horribly familiar scenario for all Arizona Cardinals fans. There has been just one postseason game for the franchise in the last eight years and confidence in another one anytime soon is beginning to fade.
An inability to win back-to-back games is going to be a major impediment for any team and the Cardinals will not have been backed by many to be involved in Super Bowl betting in Vegas in the first place. There may still be a long way to go until the end of the regular season but going into the second half of the campaign without a good number of wins is going to turn playoff dreams to dust.
There is a chance that second-year head coach Jonathan Gannon can turn things around but there has been little evidence of that happening ever since he joined the organization. Football fans in Arizona are hungry for success after years of losing seasons. It is high time that this Cardinals outfit shows that 2021 was not a fluke.
Tough Schedule
Let’s get some excuses out of the way at the beginning, shall we? After a pre-season that showed little change in the fortunes of the team, the Cards have been hit with one of the toughest opening schedules in football. Before the season began it looked like only two of the opening six games could be winnable – and then the Washington Commanders went and transformed into an elite team.
The win in week two against the Rams was much-needed and a hopeful show of intent from Arizona. But then came two games lost on home field. The Lions and the Commanders have shown that they both will challenge for playoff berths this year but Arizona needs to make the most of these early season games at State Farm Stadium. Beating the 49ers was an obvious highlight but losing the very next week to the Packers – at home again – ruins any momentum Gannon will have hoped for.
Injury Worries
A lot has been said about the potential for success this year for the Cardinals if Kyler Murray is able to build up a winning relationship with rookie wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. After a disappointing debut game from the young man from Ohio State, he seemed to have learned a few quick lessons about the NFL in the following weeks. That – aside from his personal health and well-being – is why the injury sustained against Green Bay is so concerning.
MHJ was forced to leave the field in the first half of that game after his head collided with a defensive player on an incompletion. Cards fans will be desperate that he can resume full training and return to the field of play as soon as possible. It was beginning to look like the team finally had a scoring outlet and Murray does look like he enjoys connecting with his new WR target.
The fact that Arizona lost a bunch of other players to injury in the same game – at the same time as giving away a whole lot of penalties – is also troubling. Bilal Nichols, Sean Murphy-Bunting, Kyzier White, and Evan Brown all reported as injured after the week six game and with a bye week not coming around until the middle of November, Gannon will be hoping that most of those players can return to help post a few wins before it is too late.
Where Do the Wins Come From?
It is all very well beating last season’s Super Bowl finalists, but if there is no positive follow up there is little chance for the Cards to make the playoffs. The games before the bye week have to bring at least two wins and they are most likely to come against AFC East opponents. If Arizona can reach a .500 record by then, there will definitely be a more positive vibe around the entire organization.
The second half of the season – after the bye week – also looks a case of whether this team can perform to its abilities. There are enough winnable games to get excited about, with the opportunity to make some ground in the division as well. Just one win against Seattle is probably needed but two wins in the matter of three weeks would boost confidence as well as the Arizona record.
The rest of the schedule mixes tough games with games that absolutely have to be won. Being able to go into the final game of the season at home against the 49ers with the potential of making the playoffs has to be the aim – and one that should not be considered out of reach just yet.
Divisional Wins Can Lead to Postseason Action
Just three of the final seven games of the season are against non-divisional opponents and that should put the Cardinals in a good position for some postseason action. Getting back to the 11 wins of the 2021 season might be hoping a little far but there is a chance to capitalize against the Seahawks, Rams, and even the 49ers.
Meeting San Francisco on the final day of the regular season may actually be a good move if the 49ers have already done enough to capture the divisional title. A positive record might just be able to sneak a wild card berth for the Redbirds if that is the case. But the priority should be figuring out how to win the NFC West for the first time since 2015. Then a hopefully fully fit roster can look forward to surprising a few more people in the playoffs this season.
