3 reasons the Arizona Cardinals historically bad luck will end in the 2020s

3 - Plan for a long-term window is in place

We saw Monti Ossenfort putting his plan into place last season, and that involved saving money and acquiring as many draft picks for the future as possible. While it foreshadowed a subpar season for 2023, it allowed the organization to plan for long-term success instead of trying to “buy a championship,” which seemed to be former general manager Steve Keim’s method for a decade.

It’s a plan not much different from what the Chiefs, Bengals, and Lions have all put into place. One that requires building primarily through the draft and with free agents who typically fit their respective systems instead of going after high-profile players except in outlying cases or when the franchise has reached a specific threshold. The results have been a brewing dynasty in Kansas City, and two complete identity changes in Cincinnati and Detroit. 

If the Arizona Cardinals continue to give Ossenfort time to follow the same blueprint, the organization’s odds of becoming an NFL powerhouse sooner than later are high. It’s all a matter of refusing to deviate from the plan, and unless Ossenfort changes his current mentality, that probably isn’t happening.