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Resourceful Arizona Cardinals passing all the tests so far

By Russell S. Baxter

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - NOVEMBER 21: Head coach Kliff Kingsbury of the Arizona Cardinals looks on before the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on November 21, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - NOVEMBER 21: Head coach Kliff Kingsbury of the Arizona Cardinals looks on before the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on November 21, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images) /
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A dozen weeks into the season, the Arizona Cardinals have overcome their share of injuries and own the best win-loss record in the league.

It has been an interesting rebuild in the desert.

Go back to 2018 and the year after head coach Bruce Arians opted to depart. The current leader of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had led the franchise to a 49-30-1 regular-season record from 2013-17 and led the club to a pair of playoff appearances. That includes a 2015 campaign in which the Arizona Cardinals won a franchise-record 13 regular-season contests and last won the NFC West.

Enter Steve Wilks as Arians’ successor and the decision to move up in the draft to select UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen. They were some of the numerous reasons the Cards fell to an NFL-worst 3-13 in 2018. The Arizona offense finished dead last in the NFL in total yards, rushing, and passing. They were the first team since the 1977 Tampa Bay Buccaneers to finish at the bottom of the league in all three categories.

Wilks was one and done as head coach. General manager Steve Keim would deal Rosen to the Miami Dolphins. He also hired former Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury and used the first overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft on Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Kyler Murray.

The club finished 5-10-1 during the duo’s first season. One year later, Arizona was off to a-6-3 start and looked like a team that would challenge for a playoff berth. But they dropped five of their final seven games and were on the outside looking in when it came to the postseason tournament.

This offseason, the team signed free agents such as defensive end J.J. Watt, wide receiver A.J. Green and kicker Matt Prater. Keim traded for center Rodney Hudson. The addition of these veterans combined with the young performers already in place has been ideal.

It’s fast-forward to this season as the team got off to an electrifying start. The club won its first seven games since the franchise was based in St. Louis way back in 1974. The Cardinals have split their last four contests and played the last three without Murray and wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins. But Kingsbury’s team came away with road wins over the 49ers and Seahawks with Colt McCoy at the controls.

The Cardinals sit with a two-game lead over the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC West. The team has yet to lose on the road (6-0) and within the division (4-0). The defense has had its moments and Markus Golden (10) and Chandler Jones (8) have combined for 18 of the club’s 29 sacks. And former Steelers’ running back James Conner is near the top of the league with 13 total touchdowns.

There’s still work to be done if the Arizona Cardinals are to win their first division title and make the franchise’s first playoff appearance since 2015. But Kingsbury’s team has not only proven to be quite good but pretty savvy as well.

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