Arizona

Instant Takeaways from Cardinals’ Costly Loss to Vikings

Published

1 year ago

December 1, 2024

Instant Takeaways from Cardinals’ Costly Loss to Vikings

The Arizona Cardinals surrendered a 19-6 lead, losing to the Minnesota Vikings 23-22. It was a game they had to have, and they now fall to 6-6 and trail the Seattle Seahawks by a game and a half for the NFC West.

This is the type of loss that has a rebounding effect on a team. The ability to bounce back from a poor showing in Seattle last week would have spoken volumes in a positive direction.

Unfortunately, this game spoke volumes in the wrong direction.

Here are the instant takeaways from a devastating loss:

The Cardinals have shown their fair share of surprising proficiency in 2024. Winning four in a row and sitting atop a weak division maybe oversold their ability to make the playoffs this soon.

I’ve written before that this team isn’t “ahead of schedule,” but rather right on schedule. They aren’t ready for a playoff berth just yet. Granted, the Vikings are a good squad, but you cannot choke a lead of that magnitude and be taken seriously.

There’s plenty of talent to be added and development to be done with young players, but if this team can’t win games like Sunday’s, they can’t win in January. Their division-winning could be all but gone, and their overall playoff hopes are in serious trouble, with another extremely bad matchup with the Seahawks coming to Phoenix next week.

It’s never on one guy, or even one coach, but head coach Jonathan Gannon needs to find a balance between his over-aggression in 2023, and the playing-to-lose that occurred on Sunday.

Five field goal attempts, punting on fourth and short, not going for a touchdown to seal the game late, and ignoring a potential two-point conversion to go up 14 were conservative decisions that didn’t pan out.

It’s easy to scrutinize each one in a vacuum and overreact to them – plenty more went wrong than these, but those decisions don’t win you big games against good opponents. The Cardinals need to be playing with more urgency, and that extends to Gannon.

Finding the proper balance between smart and reckless is the key to game management with an up-and-coming team.

Again, it’s easy to criticize Drew Petzing, but it’s not all on him. There were plenty of terrible mistakes in the form of penalties, sloppy play by the offensive line at times, and poor decisions and throws by Murray.

But as the Cardinals came up to run a desperation drive, I thought to myself “this team has no explosive ability.”

That’s fine, when you’re able to pound the rock and maintain a lead, or when you’re playing inferior teams. But when you’re facing a two-minute drill, there’s rarely a play designed for quick chunk yardage, and outside of the occasional flashes from Marvin Harrison Jr., there’s no big play or deep ball threat from most of the offense.

You can’t necessarily live and die by the vertical, but the lack of explosiveness keeps the entire defense right in Murray’s face. Even when he escapes the pocket, there’s not much open field to survey.

The broadcast also talked at length about getting the job done on first and second down, and staying out of third down. Arizona’s offense isn’t nearly reliable enough to make a living on third down.

It’s not that they need to be converting on first down, but far too many plays on early downs went for losses, or penalties, or barely a yard or two. Couple that with the fact that no one is worried about a throw deeper than 10 yards downfield, and the Cardinals’ offense simply isn’t a threat to teams who are fundamentally sound.

Feeding Trey McBride and James Conner is a great way to control the time of possession, but in this league, against the better teams, you need explosiveness, and you need to keep the defense honest. Arizona hasn’t been able to do that outside of their blowout of the Rams, and in smaller part the Jets.

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Arizona

Arizona baseball falls to ASU in midweek nonconference game

Published

3 hours ago

March 11, 2026

Press Room

Arizona baseball falls to ASU in midweek nonconference game

TEMPE – The Phoenix metro has not been kind to Arizona baseball through the first month of the season.

Arizona fell to rival ASU 10-4 on Tuesday night in front of a packed crowd at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. The Wildcats clawed back after falling behind 6-1, but the Sun Devils closed the door in the late innings.

The nonconference game was the first of five matchups between the rivals, with the UA hosting a 3-game Big 12 Conference series in early April followed by one more non-league game in Tempe.

Arizona (6-10) is now 0-4 in the Phoenix area, with three losses coming in the opening weekend College Baseball Series in Surprise. Arizona dropped to 0-3 in midweek games.

Collin McKinney got the start for the Wildcats, allowing four earned runs on five hits and six strikeouts. McKinney conceded one run in the first inning but escaped out of a bases loaded jam. He looked sharp until giving up a 2-run homer to ASU’s Dean Toigo in the fourth inning.

“We saw the velocity at times. We saw the breaking stuff,” Arizona coach Chip Hale said. “It was very encouraging from us on our side for him.“

The Sun Devils tacked on three more runs in the fourth, including a 2-run blast from Landon Hairston off reliever Matthew Martinez.

Arizona answered in the sixth inning when sophomore catcher Roman Meyers drilled a 450-feet 3-run homer to bring the score to 6-4. It was Meyers’ third homer of the season.

“He always has a chance. He’s got massive power,” Hale said. “So if he hits it he has a chance for a home run.”

Arizona’s five through nine hitters combined for six of the team’s eight hits, led by 2-hit games from Caleb Danzeisen and Cash Brennan.

Arizona’s offense, however, couldn’t keep up with the Sun Devils, who added runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings to pull away. Wildcats pitchers gave up eight free bases on the night.

Arizona is back in action Friday when it begins Big 12 play at Utah. First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. MST.

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Arizona

WATCH: How Helping One Woman provides hope and support with ‘Girl’s Night Out’

Published

15 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

WATCH: How Helping One Woman provides hope and support with ‘Girl’s Night Out’

PEORIA, AZ — What if a simple dinner could help someone rebuild their life? In Peoria, a local chapter of Helping One Woman is doing just that by gathering once a month for a “Girls Night Out” with a powerful purpose.

Each month, women in the community nominate someone facing an unimaginable challenge: the loss of a spouse or child, a cancer diagnosis, or another life-altering hardship. That woman becomes the evening’s honoree.

At the dinner, attendees each contribute at least $10 and take part in raffles supported by local businesses. By the end of the night, the funds raised are gifted directly to the recipient to help with expenses during a difficult time.

But organizers say the money is only part of the impact. The room full of encouragement, hugs, and shared support can be just as powerful.

ABC15’s Cameron Polom talked with the Peoria chapter president and two women whose lives were changed thanks to the group’s generosity. See the full Uplifting Arizona story in the video player above.

See more from Uplifting Arizona:

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What have the Cardinals done in NFL free agency? – Arizona Sports

Published

1 day ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

What have the Cardinals done in NFL free agency? – Arizona Sports

The NFL’s legal tampering window is officially open, and it didn’t take long for the Arizona Cardinals to get in the mix.

A running list of the new names and familiar faces coming to Arizona in 2026:

New names on Cardinals roster this free agency

Kendrick Bourne

The former San Francisco 49ers and New England Patriots wide receiver brings another body to Arizona’s wide receivers room that includes Michael Wilson and Marvin Harrison Jr.

He’s got plenty of familiarity with new Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur from their time together in San Francisco (2017-20). Bourne also spent a year with expected Cardinals starter Jacoby Brissett in 2024 with the Patriots.

The wide receiver caught 37 passes for 551 yards in 16 games played (eight starts) last year.

He’s now on board for two years in Arizona.

Isaac Seumalo

The guard spent the past three years with the Pittsburgh Steelers after a seven-season stint with the Philadelphia Eagles.

He’s started 104 out of 125 games played and has spent time at both left and right guard during his NFL career.

According to Next Gen Stats, the guard allowed a 3.7% pressure rate last year. That was the lowest rate among all eligible guards in 2025.

Gardner Minshew

Minshew agreed to terms on a one-year deal on Monday.

He’s expected to back up expected starter Jacoby Brissett in 2026, according to Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro.

Coming off his seventh NFL season and first with the Kansas City Chiefs, Minshew appeared in four games (one start) last year. He completed 46.2% of his throws for 37 yards and an interception.

Before landing with the Chiefs, Minshew spent time with the Las Vegas Raiders (2024), Indianapolis Colts (2023), Philadelphia Eagles (2021-22) and Jacksonville Jaguars (2019-20).

RB Tyler Allgeier

Allgeier comes over to Arizona on a reported two-year contract.

Before agreeing to terms on the $12.25 million deal with Arizona on Monday, Allgeier played four seasons with the Atlanta Falcons.

He ran for 514 yards and eight touchdowns on 143 carries last year, while adding another 14 catches for 96 yards.

While he worked mostly behind Bijan Robinson the past three years, Allgeier did surpass the 1,000-yard mark as a rookie in 2022.

Familiar faces

L.J. Collier

Collier is back on a one-year deal.

The defensive lineman appeared in four games in 2025 due to a knee injury suffered in Week 2.

He recorded six tackles and two QB hits in what was his third season with the team.

Roy Lopez

After a one-year stint with the Detroit Lions, Lopez is back with his hometown team on a reported two-year deal.

In 17 games played last year, he recorded two sacks, four tackles for loss and a pass defensed.

Before his time in Detroit, Lopez spent two seasons with Arizona from 2023-24. During that span, he registered a sack, six tackles for loss, three passes defensed and a forced fumble in 30 games played (21 starts).

K Chad Ryland

Ryland is back on a one-year deal, the team announced.

Ryland went through plenty of struggles last season after a having a career year in 2024. His accuracy dropped from 87.5% in 2024 to 75.8% last season. He was especially inconsistent from 40 yards and on, compiling a 13-of-20 mark (65%). Inside 40 yards, though, Ryland was 12-of-13 (92.3%).

Arizona brought in kicker Josh Karty late in the year (more on him later), but Ryland never gave up his role and appeared in all 17 games.

A one-year deal isn’t going to break the bank by any means.

P Blake Gillikin

The Cardinals must feel pretty good about where Gillikin is at in his recovering from a back injury last year with their signing of the punter to a one-year deal.

Before he went down five games into the season, the punter was leading the league in yards per punt with 51.7.

Not only that, across his five seasons (65 games) in the NFL, he holds the all-time record for yards per punt at 48.5.

Staying healthy is key for Gillikin, who also missed time in 2024 due to an ankle injury.

RB James Conner

Technically not a free agent, Conner was a potential cut candidate given his contract.

But after reportedly revising his deal, Conner is returning for his sixth season with the Cardinals.

The running back brings plenty of leadership and a bruising running style to the mix.

He’s coming off an abbreviated 2025 (three games) due to an ankle injury but had rushed for a pair of 1,000-yard seasons the two years prior. He scored at least seven rushing touchdowns each season from 2022-24.

CB Sean Murphy-Bunting

Much like Conner, Murphy-Bunting was another prime cut candidate due to his contract but reportedly revised his deal with Arizona as well.

Murphy-Bunting has a lot to prove after missing all of 2025 due to an injury suffered away from the team facility.

In his first season with the Cardinals, the cornerback recorded 52 tackles, three interceptions, five passes defensed and two forced fumbles across 15 starts.

Follow @Tdrake4sports

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