ARIZONA — You won’t often find the Arizona Cardinals on any list of “winners” for their offseason.

Nor should you.

Numerous tough pills were swallowed at the conclusion of 2025, where the Cardinals went 3-14 after winning their first two games. It was a spiral that could only have happened in a desert.

As a result, the Cardinals sent head coach Jonathan Gannon and franchise quarterback Kyler Murray packing. A year that was expected to produce playoff potential fell flat on its face, and Arizona again opted to hit the reset button.

The Cardinals were one of The Athletic’s clear losers from this offseason:

How The Cardinals Were Losers

“At 3-14, the Cardinals already had a low floor, but they actually might be worse after this offseason,” wrote Mike Jones.

“The team has several big question marks hanging over the coaching staff after taking a large gamble on first-time head coach Mike LaFleur, who struggled in his lone stint as a play caller with the Jets and revived his reputation by working under McVay for three seasons with the Rams. LaFleur hired Nathaniel Hackett as his offensive coordinator, despite Hackett’s struggles as head coach with the Broncos and as offensive coordinator with the Jets.

“Arizona parted with the talented yet oft-injured Kyler Murray and opted against upgrading its quarterback position. Veteran Jacoby Brissett, who went 1-11 as the Cardinals’ starter last season, held out for much of the offseason. Rookie running back Jeremiyah Love, the No. 3 pick in the draft, represents the main bright spot in an offseason of conservative moves.”

Why That Was Needed

It would have a massive mistake for the Cardinals to convince themselves capable of a quick turnaround. Teams in the NFL aren’t massively far apart in terms of talent, though a three-win organization probably isn’t just a move away from being a playoff team.

Nuance is mandatory when evaluating the Cardinals’ 2025 season, as injuries did partially derail Arizona’s season. However, even a fully healthy team may have sputtered with similar problems.

The Cardinals ultimately fired Gannon despite massive locker room support in his favor. There’s much to be said about Gannon and the good he did for revamping the culture in Arizona — though losing your final 14-of-15 games makes it tough for any head coach to keep their job.

Murray’s seven-year tenure with the Cardinals was simply too up-and-down to warrant sticking around for a third coaching staff. Ripping the band-aid off was hard, undoubtedly, though it was a move that was right for the big picture.

And that’s maybe where there’s beauty in the acceptance that this offseason needed to happen.

Arizona won 15 games in the last three seasons. It’s not as if the Cardinals were punting on Super Bowl aspirations and tearing down a title contender.

It would have been foolish to believe an eighth season with Murray would have been the one to revitalize things. The same can be said for Gannon and his abilities as a head coach for a fourth season.

NFL players, coaches and front office members can’t afford to simply mail in a season. There’s too much on the line on a weekly (and yearly) basis for the Cardinals to be thinking about 2027.

With that said, there’s also a dose of reality that needs to be taken: Arizona’s in a position to establish building blocks for the future. The hope is to be competitive with first-year coach Mike LaFleur and the potential he carries as the next innovative offensive mind.

Moves made this offseason by the Cardinals were clearly more geared towards the future. There was nothing fancy about this offseason — though that was by design.

The Cardinals ate their vegetables this offseason. It wasn’t flashy, nor sexy, though it was needed to get things trending in the right direction.

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