Category: NFC West news

Cardinals lose ground in NFC West with loss to Vikings

The Cardinals now trail the Seahawks by a full game after losing on Sunday and the Seahawks beating the Jets.

The Arizona Cardinals entered Week 13 tied with the Seattle Seahawks at 6-5 atop the NFC West, although Seattle held a head-to-head tiebreaker to be the leader.

After games in Week 13, the Cardinals lost ground.

They blew a 13-point second-half lead on Sunday, falling 23-22 to the Minnesota Vikings, falling to 6-6.

What made things worse was seeing the Seattle Seahawks rally back from 14-0 and 21-7 deficits to beat the New York Jets 26-21, improving them to 7-5.

The Cardinals are now a full game behind Seattle in the division and have a critical game home against them next week. Win and they eliminate the tiebreaker. Lose and they will be essentially three games behind because of the two-game lead and head-to-head tiebreaker.

The Cardinals can’t afford to lose three in a row after winning four straight.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Cardinals kept themselves from perfect NFC West weekend

The Cardinals had the help they needed from the Eagles and Packers. They didn’t take care of their own business with the Seahawks.

The Arizona Cardinals could have had a perfect Week 12 in the NFC West. Depending on the outcomes of their game with the Seattle Seahawks and the games the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams had, they could have extended their lead in the division over all them.

A win over the Seahawks and a loss by the 49ers and Rams would have given Arizona a two-game lead over everyone, sitting at 7-4 with the rest of the division at 5-6.

The 49ers, playing without QB Brock Purdy, LT Trent Williams, DE Nick Bosa and CB Charvarius Ward, were blown out by the Green Bay Packers 38-10. The Rams gave up 255 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns to RB Saquon Barkley in a 37-20 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

However, Arizona couldn’t do their job. They lost to Seattle 16-6, failing to score a touchdown and mustering only 298 total yards.

Now the Seahawks and Cardinals are both 6-5 but Seattle holds a head-to-head tiebreaker over Arizona, putting them in first place.

Arizona and Seattle are both on the road in Week 13. The Cardinals face the 9-2 Minnesota Vikings, while the Seahawks take on the 3-8 New York Jets.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Cardinals move up in NFC, get help in NFC West

Thanks to wins by the Broncos and Seahawks, the Cardinals are now No. 3 in the NFC and increased their lead in the NFC West.

The Arizona Cardinals didn’t play in Week 11 but moved up in the NFC playoff race. Thanks to a 38-6 win by the Denver Broncos over the Atlanta Falcons, the Cardinals are now third in the NFC.

They entered the week as the No. 4 seed at 6-4. Atlanta was also 6-4, but now that Atlanta has a fifth loss, the Cardinals are now in the No. 3 seed.

Arizona also increased its lead in the NFC West. Thanks to a 20-17 win by the Seattle Seahawks over the San Francisco 49ers, the Cardinals hold a full one-game lead over everyone. The 49ers, Seahawks and L.A. Rams are all 5-5.

For a bye week, it was a good one for the Cardinals. They moved up in the conference and increased their lead in the division.

Not bad.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Cardinals HC Jonathan Gannon is on a mission to win the NFC West

Arizona Cardinals HC Jonathan Gannon has ignited a passion within the team locker room, one that might yield them the NFC West in 2024.

Arizona Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon has ignited both a change in locker room enthusiasm and team identity in his first year. Having coached in and around the NFL for nearly two decades, Gannon has Cardinals’ fans hoping for a playoff berth in 2024.



There was evidently an intangible void needed to be filled by new leadership for the Cardinals franchise. Before Gannon, quarterback Kyler Murray wasn’t being optimized, often forced to run fancy RPO schemes under former coach Kliff Kingsbury. The most noticeable change for Gannon is his strategy to put Murray under center, using 13 personnel to neutralize the opponent’s pass defense, and create play-action opportunities in the pass game.

There is also a growing physicality on the defensive side of the ball for the Cardinals. Having recorded six sacks in Week 9, Gannon and Cardinals defensive coordinator Nick Rallis are producing a swarming presence through various shell coverages and blitz schemes. 

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The New York Jets will need to study long and hard to assure their past protection can handle the Cardinals blitz in week 10. Gannon however has his eyes set on advancing to 6-4 and furthering the momentum owner Michael Bidwell knew he could inspire when he hired him.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

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Cardinals could be in 1st place in NFC West after Week 6

If the Cardinals beat the Packers and the Niners beat the Seahawks in Week 6, the Cardinals would be in the NFC West lead.

After the Arizona Cardinals lost to the Washington Commanders in Week 4, it felt like the season was getting away from them. Many began to question whether they were failing at another rebuild.

However, things have changed after the Cardinals beat the San Francisco 49ers 24-23 in Week 5.

With just a couple of possible things going the Cardinals waym they will be in first place after the weekend.

How?

Here is what the standings look like in the NFC West right now:

  1. Seattle Seahawks, 3-2 (0-0 division)
  2. Arizona Cardinals, 2-3 (2-0 division)
  3. San Francisco 49ers, 2-3 (0-2 division)
  4. Los Angeles Rams, 1-4 (1-1 division)

The Seahawks and 49ers play Thursday night. If the Niners win, improving to 3-3, the Seahawks would drop to 3-3.

If the Cardinals beat the Green Bay Packers on Sunday at Lambeau Field, they will also be 3-3.

The Cardinals, Seahawks and 49ers would all be 3-3 but the Cardinals would be the leader via tiebreakers.

The 49ers would hold a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Seahawks and the Cardinals hold one over the Niners, and the Cardinals have the best division record in the division.

So when things looked bleak a week ago, the Cardinals are potentially just days from being in first place.

Funny how that goes.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Pardon as the Cardinals quietly conquer the NFC West

Escaping the San Francisco 49ers on the road Sunday means that the Arizona Cardinals remain undefeated in the NFC West.

Thanks to slumps by both the Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers, the 2-3 Arizona Cardinals are now finding new life as true NFC West contenders.

Trailing 23-13 in the fourth quarter Sunday, it was looking bleak for the Cardinals. Yet, somehow their rugged play on defense forced a crucial red-zone turnover that gave quarterback Kyler Murray another chance to win it, leading a game-winning drive ending in a 35-yard Chad Ryland field goal for a 24-23 win. 

Escaping the Niners on the road Sunday means that the Cardinals remain undefeated in their division. Remember, Arizona blasted the Los Angeles Rams in week two although the Washington Commanders made a mockery of their defense in week 4.

It’s been a very ambiguous start for Arizona but new found life on the defensive side of the ball may help them build the confidence needed to string together a few wins. 

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Seahawks in control of NFC West after 3 games

Seattle is 3-0 while the rest of the division is 1-2. The 49ers have major injury concerns.

The NFC West is has been interesting. The two teams expected to control it — the San Francisco 49ers and L.A. Rams — have underperformed are are dealing with scores of injuries.

After three games, one team sits atop the division at 3-0 while the rest are 1-2.

Here is how the NFC West looks after three weeks.

NFC West standings

  1. Seattle Seahawks, 3-0
  2. Arizona Cardinals, 1-2 (1-0 division games)
  3. Los Angeles Rams, 1-2 (1-1 division games)
  4. San Francisco 49ers, 1-2 (0-1 division games)

What is going on with each team?

Seattle Seahawks

The Seahawks made light work of the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, beating them 24-3 to improve to 3-0. They have a tough Monday night game on the road against the Detroit Lions in Week 4. They have been playing without running back Ken Walker

Arizona Cardinals

After dismantling the Rams in Week 2, they lost 20-13 to the Lions at home in Week 3. They fell behind 20-7 but shut out Detroit in the second half. They host the Washington Commanders in Week 4.

L.A. Rams

They rallied from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Niners 27-24 on a 37-yard field goal with two seconds left in the game. Kyren Williams rushed for a pair of touchdowns and Tutu Atwell had 93 receiving yards in the absence of Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua. They will play the Bears on the road in Week 4.

San Francisco 49ers

The Niners lost for the second straight week and now have more injury news. Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave is out for the rest of the season with a triceps tear. Running back Christian McCaffrey, currently on injured reserve, is seeking more testing and treatment abroad. Quarterback Brock Purdy has a back injury. They will be at home against the New England Patriots in Week 4.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Cardinals’ NFC West rivals have most expensive training camps for fans

While the Cardinals have free entrance and parking for fans in training camp, it costs Rams, 49ers and Seahawks fans at least $15 to attend their teams’ camps.

Throughout the years, the Arizona Cardinals have kept one tradition for fans easy to access, avoiding the temptation to make more money. They make training camp practices free to attend for fans. Entrance is free. Parking is free.

That isn’t the case for the entire NFL.

Kyle Odegard for Sportscasting.com did some research and found that 11 teams charge for fans to attend camp practices and that the three other NFC West teams, the Los Angeles Rams, the Seattle Seahawks and the San Francisco 49ers, have the most expensive training camp experiences.

The 49ers charge $20 per ticket to attend, by far the most expensive, although the proceeds are given to their charitable 49ers Foundation.

Seattle doesn’t charge for a ticket but fans must take a shuttle that costs $15 per person to attend. They do not charge for practice.

The Los Angeles Rams also are an expensive trip to training camp. They do not charge to attend but parking costs $15.

So, be glad that the Cardinals continue to make training camp a free experience for fans to be a part of.

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

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49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk requests trade, but don’t expect Cardinals to be possibility

49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk has requested a trade. The Cardinals have no chance of getting him even if they want him.

Things in the NFC West have gotten interesting as San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who has been seeking a contract extension, has formally requested a trade.

But that doesn’t mean the Arizona Cardinals will be able to acquire the former Arizona State standout.

Trade requests in the middle of contract talks are normal. It happened with the Arizona Cardinals last offseason when safety Budda Baker requested a trade. He wasn’t traded.

The 49ers have had players who wanted new contracts request a trade — kicker Robbie Gould and receiver Deebo Samuel come to mind — and new deals got done.

Aiyuk had a fantastic season in 2023, blooming into a top receiver in the league and a true No. 1 option. He had 75 receptions for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns.

The Cardinals could use a receiver like Aiyuk. But a combination of things work against them.

First, the Niners don’t want to trade Aiyuk. Beyond that, even if they were willing to trade him, they most certainly would not consider trading him to a team within the division they would face twice.

Beyond that, the price tag will likely be much higher than the Cardinals would be willing to give up to acquire him in a trade. Plus, beyond that, they would need to give him a new contract.

The Cardinals believe they have their No. 1 receiver in Marvin Harrison Jr. Aiyuk would most certainly be a better option in the passing game than either second-year receiver Michael Wilson or veteran Zay Jones.

But is there even the slightest chance that the Cardinals could trade for him?

Not likely.

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

PODCAST: NFC West defensive player and position group rankings

Jess Root and Seth Cox rank the NFC West by defensive groups, players and more in this edition of the podcast.

Cohost Seth Cox and I are back with another podcast episode and we wrap up our NFC West ranking series that we do each summer in the offseason.

After ranking the different offensive position groups and individual players in the division at each position earlier in the week, in this show, it is about th rest of the roster — defense, special teams and coaching.

We rank the position groups in terms of the four teams in the division and also rank individual players in the division at each position.

Where do the Arizona Cardinals rank? Find out!

Enjoy the show!

Enjoy the show with the embedded player above or by subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or your favorite podcast platform, so you never miss a show. Make sure as well to give it a five-star rating!

Times and topics:

(1:00) Defensive interior, defensive edge, linebacker rankings

(33:43) Cornerback and safety rankings

(42:32) Special teams and coaching rankings

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