With the NFL schedule coming out on Thursday, the idea of a Thanksgiving matchup featuring the Arizona Cardinals and Dallas Cowboys makes perfect sense.
The Arizona Cardinals are at an interesting place as the second season under Kliff Kingsbury and quarterback Kyler Murray sit at the on-deck circle. With undeniable talent and promise, the addition of a bonafide talent like DeAndre Hopkins, and a schedule that has a significant opportunity, Arizona might be readying for a breakout season in 2020.
On Thursday night, Cardinals fans get a first look at some of those games that will be an opportunity for Arizona to not finish in the basement of the NFC West. One game that could be an indicator of what potential the league sees in the Cardinals, is their matchup against the Dallas Cowboys. To add to the intrigue, it’s a game that would make sense as the second game on Thanksgiving.
That’s right. The Cardinals and Cowboys. Forget the memories of the old NFC East that featured the Cardinals in that division. This is about the here and the now, as well as the potential of a Dak Prescott versus Murray showdown. It’s the interest of Kingsbury against a retread like Mike McCarthy. It’s Jerry World and his underachieving Cowboys against the potential of a young Arizona team.
This would validate that the Cardinals are an increasingly interesting watch. While 5-10-1 is seldom an invitation to play in a stand-alone kind of game like Thanksgiving in Dallas, Arizona should be better than its 2019 record. And while it might be a season away from a quantum leap into postseason contention, the Cardinals are interesting. They were the second half of 2019, and certainly will be in 2020.
In too many ways, the NFL schedule makers hope they can identify the teams ready to breakthrough. While it’s a fair argument Dallas gets a pass for simply being Dallas, a team like the Cardinals seem to be on a glide path to better than relevant. Being featured on Thanksgiving would validate that idea.