Arizona Cardinals History: Which quarterback had the most passing yards in one game?

The Arizona Cardinals have seen dynamic performances from their quarterbacks throughout their long history. So who had the most passing yards in a single game?

The Arizona Cardinals have been around since the NFL started, so there are a lot of different quarterbacks out there who could hold the honor of the most passing yards in a single game. And there are memorable names out there like Kurt Warner, Carson Palmer, Neil Lomax, Jake Plummer, Jim Hart, and even Kyler Murray, who you may think holds that record. 

But none of them have that distinguished honor. Even if some came close on several occasions. For example, Warner holds the distinction of having thrown the second and third most passing yards in one game, which first occurred on November 25th, 2007, when he tossed for 484 yards against the lowly San Francisco 49ers. 

Warner struck back just one year later in September 2008 when he threw for 472 yards against the New York Jets, which ranks third in franchise history. Guys like Lomax, Plummer, and Palmer are also located near the top of the list, but Boomer Esiason, who played in the desert for one season, has them all beaten. 

Boomer Esiason holds Arizona Cardinals record for most single-game passing yards

Esiason is best known for his time with the Cincinnati Bengals, and his stint in Arizona came during the twilight of his career in 1996 when he played in just 10 games. But that didn’t stop him from putting up 522 yards through the air against the team now known as the Washington Commanders. 

The performance also made Esiason the only member of the Arizona Cardinals to throw for over 500 yards in a single game. But ironically enough, it wasn’t Esiason’s best showing by any means, as he also threw four interceptions that afternoon and posted a 77.1 quarterback rating. 

Nonetheless, it was good enough of a performance for Esiason to lead the Cardinals to a 37-34 win, the first of a three game winning streak, all of which came against the team’s old NFC East rivals. The Cardinals would beat Washington a second time in Week 16 in a 27-26 thriller.

(Statistics provided by Stat-Muse)