Because following the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Los Angeles Rams were allowed to play the Super Bowl at home for the last two years, hopes in the desert would become the third team to receive this honor. And the team looked like they might be eligible for the playoffs. But already in week 1 there was a nasty smack once morest the Kansas City Chiefs. Patrick Mahomes missed 5 touchdowns for the Cardinals. Week 2 was followed by a win over the Raiders that brought some hope. Then for a few weeks it went up and down losing to the Rams, winning in Carolina, losing to the Eagles and losing to the Seahawks, and beating the Saints. So following week 7 they were down to three wins and four losses.
But then it really went downhill. From the remaining ten seasons they would only win one more game (Week 10 with the Rams). Then, in week 14, Kyler Murray was seriously injured and will likely miss a large part of the new season as well. After the season, Cliff Kingsbury and Steve Keim had to go. They were replaced by Jonathan Gannon (formerly DC of the Eagles) and Monti Ossenfort.
Notable Events: WR Deandre Hopkins will miss the first six games for using illegal substances.
JJ Watt said goodbye to the NFL at the end of the season and ended his career.
The Cardinals fielded four different quarterbacks in Kyler Murray, Colt McCoy, Trance McSorley and David Blough.
Positive: JJ Watt delivered once more in his last season and had a strong 12.5 sacks.
Cons: Arizona conceded the second most points and wasn’t really good on any stats. Neither offensively nor defensively. On average, only 20 points were achieved. However, for the sake of fairness, one has to say that there was also quite a bit of bad luck with injuries. Players like Zach Ertz, Kyler Murray or the only Pro Bowler Budda Bakker had to end the season early.
Rookie Rating: TE Trey McBride caught 29 passes for 265 yds and a TD. DE Cameron Thomas showed talent with 3 sacks. DE Myjai Sanders also picked up 3 sacks. RB Keaontay Ingram gets at least one touchdown. CB Christian Matthew had just 11 tackles. LB Jesse Luketa and OG Lecitus Smith and Marquis Hayes didn’t matter.
Josh Jones can be rated positively. He has developed positively and might be a contender in the future.
A flop was the signing of wide receiver Robbie Anderson. He only caught 13 balls for 206 yards and had one touchdown.
What should the Cardinals do in the offseason?
It needs reinforcements in the offensive line. A guard would be good, as would a tackle. Then you have to think regarding what you want to do with Kyler Murray.