Arizona Cardinals: 3 Most Defining Moments Thus Far

May 14, 2013; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald (11) catches the ball during organized team activities at the Cardinals Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

I thought the three most defining moments in Arizona Cardinal History would be easy to write about. I was wrong.  I have been a Cardinal fan since I was old enough to understand the game. I did not have any parental influence on sports so it had to come to me naturally. I believe what defines a franchise is winning, so here are the three most defining moments thus far.

Number One: Making the playoffs in 1998 for the first time in (Arizona) Cardinal History. Or was that the Phoenix Cardinals? You get my point. Not only did the Cardinals make the playoffs, they knocked off the Dallas Cowboys. That was a very significant moment for me and put expectations in my mind moving forward.

Number Two: Those expectations turned swiftly to disappointments every year. The second most defining moment was winning the NFC West for the first time and making playing the playoffs in 2008. That magical season was unlike anything I had ever experienced as a Cardinal fan. I did not want to be one and done, though, and they weren’t.

Number Three: Winning the NFC Championship game in Glendale, Arizona sending the Arizona Cardinals to the Superbowl for the first time in history. I vividly remember watching every moment of that game. It was unreal. It was a surreal feeling, and I was ecstatic to be able to, finally, brag to my buddies. Larry Fitzgerald was an animal during that entire postseason. No one disputes that.

Unfortunately, Fitzgerald has not had a competent quarterback since Kurt Warner. Finally, this season the Cardinal’s new regime brought in Carson Palmer for next to nothing whose career is eerily similar to Warner at the time he came to the Cardinals. Here’s to hoping the Cardinals catch lighting in a bottle, again, and with a few injuries or miracles they can reach the post season for the first time since 2009.