The team and a few individuals can set records or achieve milestones with their performance in Week 15 against the Lions.
The Arizona Cardinals have a playoff berth on the line against the Detroit Lions. If they win the game, they clinch a postseason spot for the first time since 2015.
However, while that is the No. 1 goal — win and get in the postseason — the team and some players have individual and team records and milestones they can reach in the game.
Hopkins should not be expected to be back before the NFC Championship Game or Super Bowl, if the Cardinals can make it that far without him.
The Arizona Cardinals will be without receiver DeAndre Hopkins for at least the rest of the regular season following knee surgery. He suffered a torn MCL in the Cardinals’ Monday night loss to the Los Angeles Rams.
There has been talk of a possible return for the playoffs and one timeline has him coming back in about six weeks.
However, a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter clears up when that might be.
According to Schefter, at the earliest, Hopkins “could be back” for the NFC Championship or Super Bowl. Anything before that would be considered “unrealistic.”
The Cardinals went 2-1 without him and quarterback Kyler Murray before last week, when both players returned.
If the Cardinals can make it to the conference championship without Hopkins, imagine the boost getting him back in the lineup would be.
Of course, it requires the Cardinals to make the playoffs, win two playoff games (or earn the bye and win one) before he could come back.
But knowing the potential timeline at least gives everyone an idea as to when the earliest Hopkins could return would be.
The Cardinals expect to have almost a fully healthy offensive lineup against the Lions.
The Arizona Cardinals have a number of players on their final injury report listed as questionable for the game. Among them were running back James Conner, who suffered an ankle injury at the end of the team’s Monday night loss to the Los Angeles Rams, and tight end Zach Ertz, who apparently suffered a hamstring injury in practice on Friday.
It appears both will be good to go Sunday morning.
Conner playing was more or less expected. Head coach Kliff Kingsbury said he felt good about both Conner and Chase Edmonds, who was activated off injured reserve Saturday, both playing.
With the loss of receiver DeAndre Hopkins for at least the rest of the regular season, getting both running backs back will be important and having Ertz as another pass-catching threat along with the other receivers on the roster will be critical.
Kickoff for the Cardinals’ game against the Lions is 11 a.m. Arizona time. Inactives will be announced about 9:30 a.m. Arizona time.
Cards Wire, Lions Wire and AZCentral Sports make their predictions for the Cardinals-Lions Week 15 game Sunday.
The Arizona Cardinals face the Detroit Lions today in Week 15 with a playoff berth on the line. They are 7-0 on the road and have won every game by at least 10 points and now face a one-win Lions team.
They have had a bunch of very close games and another bunch of absolute blowout losses.
What can we expect from this game today?
We have expert picks below from me, Lions Wire managing editor Jeff Risdon and then picks from the AZCentral Sports staff from their Cardinals-Lions preview video.
All the information you need to be able to watch or listen to the Cardinals play the Lions.
The Arizona Cardinals fave the one-win Detroit Lions Sunday in Week 15. They hope to beat the Lions for the first time since 2015 and quarterback Jared Goff for the first time since 2016 and, by so doing, clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2015.
Do you plan on watching or listening to the game? If so, here is the information you need.
Time and location
Cardinals at Lions, 1 p.m ET (11 a.m. Arizona time), Sunday, December 19, Ford Field, Detroit
TV, streaming, broadcasting team
The game will air regionally on FOX. According to the TV coverage maps, the game will air locally in the yellow areas of the graphic below from 506 Sports.
506 Sports
Gus Johnson and Aqib Talib will call the game and Megan Olivo will report from the sideline.
You can also stream the game live on FuboTV. Try it free.
Radio info
The Cardinals radio broadcast in English is on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM. Dave Pasch and Ron Wolfley will call the game with Paul Calvisi reporting from the sideline. You can also hear the Cardinals’ broadcast on SiriusXM, on Sirius ch. 85, XM ch. 385 and on the SXM App.
The Spanish broadcast for the Cardinals airs on KHOV 105.1 FM. Luis Hernandez and Rolando Cantu will call the game.
The Lions radio broadcast will air in the Detroit area on 97.1 FM The Ticket. Dan Miller and Lomas Brown (former offensive tackle for both the Lions and the Cardinals) will call the game with T.J. Lang reporting from the sideline.
In this week’s simulation, the Cardinals build a 20-3 lead, the Lions get a go-ahead TD with less than a minute left and Matt Prater beats his former team with a last-second field goal.
The Arizona Cardinals are heavy favorites in their Week 15 matchup over the Detroit Lions. Detroit’s games this season have tended to go one of two ways — either they are blowouts or the Lions lose heartbreakers.
To see how this game might play out, we ran a simulation of the game on Madden NFL 22. In it, the Cardinals almost fail to beat the Lions but, thanks to a game-ending, 43-yard field goal by former Lions kicker Matt Prater to win 26-24.
The Cardinals built a 20-3 lead entering the fourth quarter but the Lions rallied back. Quarterback Jared Goff rushed for the go-ahead touchdown with 43 seconds left to go up 24-23. But the Cardinals executed a perfect hurry-up offense to get into field-goal range for Prater.
Prater made four field goals in the game.
Quarterback Kyler Murray had 412 passing yards and a touchdown, but he was picked off twice. Chase Edmonds led the team with 38 rushing yards and a score.
A.J. Green led all receivers with 11 catches for 162 yards, while Christian Kirk had eight for 91 yards and a touchdown and tight end Zach Ertz had eight for 80 yards.
Markus Golden sacked Goff twice and the Cardinals got one sack each from Jordan Phillips and Zach Allen.
For the Lions, Goff had 338 passing yards and a touchdown in addition to his rushing score. Jamaal Williams was the leading rusher with 42 yards and a touchdown.
Lions Wire managing editor Jeff Risdon takes Cardinals fans behind enemy lines to give insight about Arizona’s Week 15 opponent.
The Arizona Cardinals take on the one-win Detroit Lions Sunday afternoon hoping to clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2015 and beat them for the first time since that same year.
They face each other for the fifth consecutive season and for the ninth time in the last 10.
Both teams are on different trajectories currently, but the Lions have been tough this season despite the lack of wins.
To find out more about the Cardinals’ Week 15 opponent, Lions Wire managing editor Jeff Risdon answered a few questions to give us some insight to the team he covers.
We look at what the Cardinals must do to get back in the win column this Sunday against the Lions.
It is Week 15 in the NFL. After a heartbreaking loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Monday night, the Arizona Cardinals go back on the road to face a one-win Lions team.
Despite their record, the Detroit Lions can be a gritty team. Six of their games have been decided by 3 points or less.
With a win on Sunday, Arizona will clinch a playoff berth — their first since 2015. However, the Cardinals have not beaten the Lions in their last four meetings.
Here is what they can do to notch their league-best eighth road win of the season.
The Cardinals get back Edmonds and a core special teams player as they take on the Lions, but lose two starters for at least three games.
The Arizona Cardinals announced a number of roster moves on the eve of their Week 15 matchup on the road against the Detroit Lions. Two players landed on injured reserve, two were activated and two players were elevated from the practice squad.
The Lions will be missing their top receiver and rusher against the Cardinals.
The Detroit Lions wrapped up their week of practice and released their final injury report of the week. They ruled out two players, placed one on injured reserve and have a number of players questionable for the game.
