The Arizona Cardinals' 2025 schedule is out. It has its challenges. As rumored, the Cards will face two division rivals—the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks—in the span of four days. They’ll end the season with a rough five-game stretch against the Los Angeles Rams, Houston Texans, Atlanta Falcons, Cincinnati Bengals and the Rams (again!).
There are a few highlights to this year’s slate of games. The Cards start with them facing the New Orleans Saints, a team in an adjustment period with a first-year coach and a new starter following Derek Carr’s retirement. The Cards’ home opener is against the Carolina Panthers, a team they should have beaten last season in Week 16. And if Seattle has lost some of its mojo after swapping out Geno Smith for Sam Darnold, the Cardinals might have a chance at making the playoffs.
But if—and only if—they are prepared for the biggest obstacle of the 2025 season: the damn bye week.
Arizona Cardinals could fall victim to the bye week bug again in 2025
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I’m more nervous about the bye in week 8 than I am about the five-game hell march closing out the Cardinals' season. The team had a 6-4 record before it… and went 2-5 after.
Arizona did what Arizona does best: give you hope, only to drop your heart like an endzone fumble.
The team was on a four-game winning streak before their Week 11 break. And the losses weren’t that bad. They fell to the Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions by a touchdown or less. They also lost to the Washington Commanders and the Green Bay Packers. All four of those teams made the playoffs. So it wasn’t like Arizona failed against schlubs.
Victory-wise, the Cards had a lot to crow about. They’d beat the Rams (who made the playoffs and finished with a 10-7 record) and the Los Angeles Chargers (also in the playoffs, 11-6). They’d also defeated some mid teams: the Miami Dolphins (8-9), Chicago Bears (5-12) and New York Jets (5-12).
While the strength of their victories was a B-, they had momentum. And it all fell apart.
After the bye week, they fell to the Seahawks, barely lost to the Minnesota Vikings, and got smacked by Seattle again. The Cards tried to rebound with a victory over the New England Patriots, but the 30-36 overtime loss to the Panthers was embarrassing.
The following week, the Cardinals lost to the Rams and tried to salvage the season by closing it out with a 47-24 victory over the 49ers. But the damage was done.
What happened?
Something happened that caused the team to lose its focus. Right guard Evan Brown said the Cardinals were “just not connected for whatever reason” after the break, per ESPN.
"We treated the bye week this year like we did last year," head coach Jonathan Gannon said. "It's something that we'll look into. I liked where it fell, honestly, and I know we won four games going into it, but it's something we'll take a look at because we haven't played exactly our brand of ball consistently from the bye on.”
Gannon also said that he would examine the Cardinals’ psychological stamina and how “your stress and distress of winning four and handling that” contributed to the team’s downfall.
What is this feeling? Is it…optimism?
Arizona’s bye is three weeks earlier this season than last. Having the break sooner means the team can address any bye-week issues sooner rather than later. Great.
The break is also longer. The Cardinals play the Packers on Oct. 19, take fifteen days off, and return for the Nov. 3 episode of Monday Night Football. They play the Dallas Cowboys, and analysts are already calling it a homecoming game for Texas-native Kyler Murray. If they are fresh, focused, and not fragmented, they could leave Dallas with a W.
The Cardinals' first three games are against the Saints, the Panthers and the 49ers, three teams that finished near the bottom of their respective divisions. After a clash with the Seattle Seahawks (boo!), they face the Tennessee Titans (worst in the least last year) and then the Indianapolis Colts and the Green Bay Packers.
There is a clear progression of difficulty, which might help the mental focus. Get the easy levels out of the way, then the mid-range difficulty, before the Hard mode of Rams/Texans/Falcons/Bengals/Rams at the end.
But if they stumble out of the bye week like last year, with no focus or plan, it will just be another Cardinals collapse. Let’s hope they have a plan. Week 8 will be here sooner than we think.