Why the Arizona Cardinals Could Surprise Everyone in 2025
Fans and analysts debate whether the Cardinals can make a major leap in the 2025 NFL season. But how well can they do? Here are our bold predictions
ESPN ranked the Arizona Cardinals 28th out of 32 teams in watchability for the 2025 season.The ranking considers factors like big plays, close games, star players, and overall excitement, not just wins and losses.
Finally, our long national nightmare is over.
No, not that one. I mean the football drought is almost over, with the NFL season starting the first weekend of September. There is nothing more fun than a Sunday afternoon in fall with a cold drink, good snack and your favorite NFL team on TV.
Unless, evidently, your favorite team is the Arizona Cardinals.
ESPN has ranked all 32 teams by their watchability for the 2025 season. It didn’t go so well for the home team. Writer Ben Solak ranked the Cardinals 28th out of 32 teams.
Ouch. On the plus side, at least the Cardinals are not the Cleveland Browns. They ranked last.
The Cardinals rank higher than the Kansas City Chiefs. Huh?
It’s a curious list, to say the least. For instance, the Cardinals rank ahead of, in addition to the Browns, the New Orleans Saints, the Seattle Seahawks and, um, the Kansas City Chiefs. Huh? The same Chiefs that have been to the last three Super Bowls, winning two of them?
Also, on the watchability front, I hear Taylor Swift shows up sometimes.
Solak points out in the accompanying story that he ranked the teams on watchability, “which is different from overall goodness.” Obviously. “Watchability is about throwing the ball over them mountains. Watchability is about touchdowns and interceptions and fourth-down attempts and sacks and points, more points and even more points if you’ve got ’em.” He grades on big plays, close games, star players and “cool stuff.”
And there are the Cardinals, hovering near the bottom of the barrel.
Solak notes that on “scheme nerd rankings,” the Cardinals do well. He praises safety Budda Baker and running back James Conner. “The Cardinals’ coaching staff has the goods,” he writes. “Unfortunately, they just aren’t an exciting watch otherwise. … It’s not a bad offense at all (sixth in success rate and ninth in points per drive!); it’s just not particularly exciting.”
Look, I have, over the last 35 years, been as hard on the Cardinals as anyone. Harder even. And this is not my opinion! Mostly. I have watched every play of every Cardinals game for the last few seasons, for both professional and personal reasons. And while they aren’t always exactly scintillating, at least they aren’t boring.
Usually.
Kyler Murray is fun to watch, sometimes for the wrong reasons
Personally, I enjoy watching Kyler Murray, the team’s quarterback. Instant offense! Sometimes for the other team! (I stole that from a basketball guide I read as a kid.) And I keep thinking that Murray and reciever Marvin Harrison Jr. are going to turn into a more dynamic duo. Baker is a monster on defense ― quite watchable! Hope springs eternal.
On the other hand. …
Some of my optimism may come from my long history of watching the team. Some of those seasons when they played at Sun Devil Stadium, whew. Brutal. (And so hot.) Fourth from the bottom would have been too generous on the watchability front. Not only did they lose, they lost in boring ways. Watching them was a chore.
But that’s no longer the case. I am not going to try to convince you that the Cardinals are more fun to watch than, say, the Detroit Lions or even the lower-rated (by ESPN) Chiefs. However, I am going to argue that you’ll enjoy watching them more than the Houston Texans (No. 13) or the New England Patriots (No. 17!!) ― certainly more than watching the New York Jets (No. 24).
Oh, who am I kidding? Like most NFL fans, I’ll watch whichever game is on. Of the 100 most-watched shows on TV in 2024, NFL games accounted for 72 of them. Which is actually down from the previous year, when they accounted for 93 of them (numbers tend to dip during years with a presidential election). The NFL is the most popular show on TV, no matter how you slice it.
And even the Cardinals are part of the reason.
Reach Goodykoontz at bill.goodykoontz@arizonarepublic.com. Facebook:facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm. Media commentary with a side of snark? Sign up for The Watchlist newsletter with Bill Goodykoontz.