Arizona Cardinals get little respect from schedule-makers

The NFL believes that the Arizona Cardinals are not popular enough to make multiple appearances on primetime television

Just three years ago, it appeared as if the Arizona Cardinals had arrived. The franchise racked up 13 regular-season victories in 2015 and found themselves being viewed on national television quite often. But then the bottom fell out.

Three consecutive non-playoff seasons followed that outstanding performance by the Cards in ’15. Now, in 2019, the team’s popularity is at an all-time low. If you think that statement is a bit harsh, take a look at the slate of games that was released by the NFL this past Wednesday.

The league’s schedule-makers have certainly reacted to the Cardinals’ downslide. The club, for the second straight year, was awarded just one primetime contest. A Halloween night matchup with the San Francisco 49ers will be the only time that Arizona gets to play in front of a national audience in ’19.

The interest in the Cards has been steadily dwindling over the past few years. The club stumbled to a 3-13 record in 2018, which led to the hiring of their third head coach in three years. Kliff Kingsbury has taken over, but the constructors of the schedule are obviously not convinced that the offensive guru will have success right away.

Of course, being the owners of the top selection in next week’s draft has provided the organization with some great publicity. There’s a group who believes that drafting Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray would bring excitement back to the desert. Others believe that Ohio State pass-rush specialist Nick Bosa or Alabama defensive lineman Quinnen Williams would make the Cardinals a hot topic again.

The best way to get noticed again is to start winning. The country prefers to watch the best that football has to offer. For the time being at least, Arizona is not talented enough to be a regular on the NFL’s primetime schedule.