Offseason optimism is real around the Arizona Cardinals. Fans are understandably excited about the team’s recent trajectory and the offseason calculations.
Going from four wins in 2023 to eight wins last season means fans can and should look at the upcoming season with great hope. Or, at least as much hope as one can muster for a team that made the playoffs once in the last nine seasons.
Optimism aside, NFL seasons can go off the rails in a hurry. An injury can devastate a team. Multiple injuries can destroy a season.
NFL success goes beyond the roster, coaching, and management. Bad luck and bad calls are inevitable. The ball is oblong, prone to awkward and funny bounces. Teams need good bounces, not funny ones.
We look at three possible scenarios that could afflict the Cardinals in the 2025 season.
3 2025 scenarios Arizona Cardinals fans will hate
Free-agent edge Josh Sweat will be OK, but nothing special
Sweat was the crown jewel of the Cardinals’ free-agency deals. Expectations couldn’t be higher. Sweat is being counted on to turn around the Cardinals’ sad pass rush from 2024.
Sweat had 43 sacks in 104 games with the Eagles. He had 237 tackles and 54 tackles for loss. He had eight sacks in the Eagles’ Super Bowl season of 2024.
He benefited greatly from Philadelphia's strong front seven. The Cardinals’ group is not as good, not yet anyway. Will playing with a weaker supporting cast diminish his effectiveness? Can teams double-team Sweat, knowing he is the most dangerous pass rusher they will face?
Sweat played 63 percent of the snaps last season. Will the Cardinals use him in a similar way? Will he be as effective if they try to get more out of him? Can he handle a larger workload?
How Sweat performs might be the single most important feature to the Cardinals’ defense.
The draft class isn’t as good as everyone thinks
Draft classes look great now, before anyone receives that first punch in the face. Drafting college players is not scientific — the Combine notwithstanding. Players might be of similar size, stature, and motivation, but that is no guarantee they have the ability and mindset to actually play in the NFL.
After all of the testing, interviews, bench presses, and 40 times, teams still aren’t sure their prized draft picks can play until they see them, duh, play.
This isn’t to say the Cardinals' draft class, which looks spiffy on paper, won’t step up. Arizona is counting on its draft class, perhaps as much as any other team, to help improve its defense.
A draft class that underperforms could have consequences.
The Cardinals will get burned by their lack of attention to the offensive line
Experts said to beef up the offensive line. Trends say get the best offensive line you can as the NFL shifts more toward a power running attack.
Sharp Football Analysis ranked the Cardinals’ offensive line ranked in 2024.
The Cardinals responded with one drafted offensive lineman, Texas’ Hayden Connor in the sixth round. Arizona added some heft in free agency by signing tackle Jake Curhan.
Arizona has James Conner ready to roll in the backfield. He gained 1,094 yards and scored nine touchdowns last season. An increased role for Conner, fueled by a bullying offensive line, can only help the offense.
But did the Cardinals do enough? Were they too one-sided with their moves on defense?
The offensive line looked like a problem in January and now looks like a problem that hasn’t been adequately addressed in the offseason.