What Really Happened With Those Arizona Cardinals NFL Scores?
Let’s be honest. If you spent your Sundays tracking the nfl scores Arizona Cardinals put up this past season, you’ve probably got a bit of emotional whiplash. It started like a dream and ended like a total wreck. Seriously, who starts 2-0 and then proceeds to lose 14 of their next 15 games? It’s almost impressive in a "how did we get here" kinda way.
The 2025 season wasn’t just bad; it was historically messy. We’re talking about a franchise-record 14 losses. By the time the clock hit zero at SoFi Stadium on January 4, 2026, the scoreboard read Rams 37, Cardinals 20. That was the final nail. One day later, head coach Jonathan Gannon was out.
Looking back at the schedule, the turning point feels like a blur of missed opportunities and an injury list that looked more like a CVS receipt. After beating the Saints and Panthers to open the year, things felt... okay? Then came the Week 3 heartbreaker against San Francisco, a 16-15 loss that basically broke the team's spirit.
The Scoreboard Tells a Brutal Story
When you look at the nfl scores Arizona Cardinals fans had to endure during the back half of the season, a pattern of "almost but not quite" emerges. They weren't always getting blown out—at least not at first. They lost to the Titans by one point (22-21) and the Colts by four (31-27).
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But then the wheels didn't just come off; they disintegrated.
- Week 10: A 44-22 thrashing at the hands of the Seahawks.
- Week 14: A 45-17 shellacking by the Rams at home.
- Week 17: A 37-14 loss to the Bengals where the offense looked like it was playing in slow motion.
Basically, the defense was a sieve. They gave up 488 points over the season. That’s nearly 29 points a game. You can’t win in this league if your defense is basically a red carpet to the end zone.
Why the Scoring Dried Up
You’ve gotta feel for Jacoby Brissett. He was thrust into the starting role after Kyler Murray went down, and honestly, the guy was running for his life. The offensive line was a revolving door due to injuries to Paris Johnson Jr. and Will Hernandez. When your star rookie defensive tackle Walter Nolen only plays six games and your top draft pick Will Johnson is sidelined, the math just doesn't add up.
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The only real bright spot? Trey McBride. The guy is a machine. He set NFL records for catches by a tight end this year, which is wild considering how bad the rest of the team was. It felt like every time the Cardinals actually moved the chains, it was because McBride willed it to happen. Michael Wilson showed some flashes too, but you can’t run an NFL offense on two guys and a wing and a prayer.
The Coaching Search: Who’s Next?
Now that Gannon is gone, the rumor mill is spinning faster than a Kyler Murray scramble. Michael Bidwill is under massive pressure to get this right. The "worst-to-first" talk is already starting, which feels a bit optimistic given they just set a record for losses, but hey, that's sports.
Names like Joe Brady and Brian Flores are being tossed around. Some people want a "stabilizer" like Mike McCarthy. Others want a young offensive genius who can actually build a scheme around Kyler when he returns in 2026.
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Honestly, the job isn't that attractive to everyone. Some analysts are calling it the worst opening in the league because of the roster turnover and the cap situation. But it’s still the NFL. Someone is going to take that check and try to fix the desert disaster.
What to Watch For This Offseason
If you're looking for a silver lining, it’s the draft capital. Having the worst record usually means a very high seat at the table in April. The focus has to be on the lines. You cannot expect a quarterback—whether it’s Murray or a new face—to survive behind what we saw in 2025.
- Fix the trenches. Both sides. No excuses.
- Secondary help. Denzel Burke looked okay as a rookie, but they need a lockdown corner.
- Health. Whatever the training staff is doing, they might need to rethink it after the injury plague of '25.
The nfl scores Arizona Cardinals produced last year are in the books. They're ugly, they're painful, and they're a roadmap of what not to do. But in the NFL, things change fast. Whether the Cardinals can actually pull off a "quick turnaround" depends entirely on who they hire in the next three weeks.
Actionable Insight for Fans: Stop checking the 2025 standings and start scouting the top three offensive tackles in the upcoming draft. This team won't go anywhere until they can protect the pocket. Keep an eye on the coaching interviews—if they go with a defensive-minded coach again, expect the offensive struggles to continue unless they land a top-tier coordinator.