Arizona will play 14 different opponents in its 17-game schedule. The Cardinals’ schedule — eight home games, nine on the road — has been ranked the 27th easiest by CBS Sports.
The Cardinals’ opponents had a 132-157 record last year, a winning percentage of .457. Only five of the Cardinals’ opponents made the playoffs last year — the Rams, Seahawks, Packers, Texans and Buccaneers.
There is no such thing as a sure thing in the NFL. In college football? Sure. There are no “homecoming-game” opponents in the NFL. Any NFL team can defeat any other NFL team — that “any given Sunday” thing.
Here we have a capsule look at Arizona’s 2025 opponents. And, we rank each opponent, 1-to-10, with 10 being the most difficult for Arizona to defeat. Rankings 1-4 should be Arizona wins; 5-7 should be tossups; 8-10 are likely losses. This presumes Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray stays healthy.
New Orleans Saints
Vs. Cardinals: Week 1 at New Orleans
Record vs. Cardinals: 16-16
2024 offensive ranking: 24th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 19th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Saints rookie coach Kellen Moore was the Eagles offensive coordinator in 2024. He didn’t bring Philly’s offensive line with him.
Ranking: 1
Carolina Panthers
Vs. Cardinals: Week 2 at State Farm Stadium
Record vs. Cardinals: 15-6
2024 offensive ranking: 23rd (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 32nd (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: How in the heck are the Cardinals only 1-7 in their last eight meetings with Carolina? Since 2019, Carolina is 29-71 with zero winning seasons.
Ranking: 5
San Francisco 49ers
Vs. Cardinals: Week 3 at SF; Week 11 at State Farm Stadium
Record vs. Cardinals: 36-31
2024 offensive ranking: 14th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 29th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: The Niners went from a Super Bowl appearance after the 2023 season to 6-11 in 2024. Injuries destroyed San Francisco, as they tend to do in the NFL. Expect the Niners to have a big bounce back season.
Ranking: 8
Seattle Seahawks
Vs. Cardinals: Week 4 at State Farm Stadium; Week 10 at Seattle
Record vs. Cardinals: 29-22-1
2024 offensive ranking: 18th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 12th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Seattle traded for resurgent QB Sam Darnold and dealt Geno Smith to Vegas. Hmmmm. Seattle might be Arizona’s best pathway to making the playoffs.
Ranking: 7
Tennessee Titans
Vs. Cardinals: Week 5 at State Farm Stadium
Record vs. Cardinals: 4-8
2024 offensive ranking: 27th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 30th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Tennessee was 3-14 in 2024. How quickly will No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward start at quarterback?
Ranking: 2
Indianapolis Colts
Vs. Cardinals: Week 6 at Indianapolis
Record vs. Cardinals: 9-9
2024 offensive ranking: 17th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 24th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Colts coach Shane Steichen was the offensive coordinator in Philly when Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon was the offensive coordinator.
Ranking: 5
Green Bay Packers
Vs. Cardinals: Week 7 at State Farm Stadium
Record vs. Cardinals: 47-26-4
2024 offensive ranking: 8th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 6th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Green Bay plays in the tough NFC North. The Packers could look right past Arizona.
Ranking: 9
Dallas Cowboys
Vs. Cardinals: Week 9 at Dallas
Record vs. Cardinals: 56-35-1
2024 offensive ranking: 21st (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 31st (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Dallas hasn’t made the NFC title game since after the 1995 season. Yikes. Cowboys are overrated but dangerous.
Ranking: 6
Jacksonville Jaguars
Vs. Cardinals: Week 12 at State Farm Stadium
Record vs. Cardinals: 2-4
2024 offensive ranking: 26th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 28th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Jags (4-13 last season) face a long rebuild. This is a game the Cardinals better win.
Ranking: 3
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Vs. Cardinals: Week 13 at Tampa Bay
Record vs. Cardinals: 11-11
2024 offensive ranking: 4th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 16th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Bucs have made the playoffs the last five seasons. This is a quality, physical team.
Ranking: 9
Los Angeles Rams
Vs. Cardinals: Week 14 at State Farm Stadium; Week 18 at LA
Record vs. Cardinals: 51-41-2
2024 offensive ranking: 20th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 17th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: NFC West champion Rams are trying to make a Super Bowl run before Matthew Stafford, 37, retires.
Ranking: 8
Houston Texans
Vs. Cardinals: Week 15 at Houston
Record vs. Cardinals: 3-3
2024 offensive ranking: 19th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 14th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Difficult non-conference game as Texans have won playoff games in each of the last two seasons.
Ranking: 7
Atlanta Falcons
Vs. Cardinals: Week 16 at State Farm Stadium
Record vs. Cardinals: 16-18
2024 offensive ranking: 13th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 23rd (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: Could the Falcons be one of those teams to rise from mediocrity to the playoffs? Could the Cardinals?
Ranking: 5
Cincinnati Bengals
Vs. Cardinals: Week 17 at Cincinnati
Record vs. Cardinals: 7-6
2024 offensive ranking: 6th (Cardinals 12th)
2024 defensive ranking: 25th (Cardinals 15th)
Comment: The Bengals were the best team to not make the 2024 playoffs.
Ranking: 8
The rankings tally
1-4 (likely victories): 3
5-7 (tossups): 7
8-10 (likely losses): 7
For a successful season, Arizona should win all three of the likely win games; win five of the seven tossup games; and win at least two of the likely losses category. That would give the Cardinals a 10-7 record, right in the wild-card race.