The stakes were clear for the Arizona Cardinals entering Week 5: A win was mandatory.
As far as the standings go, moving to 2-3 would not be a death knell. But losing to an 0-4 Tennessee Titans team — the worst in football after a month of play — at home? After two consecutive divisional losses? With a sputtering offense?
Considering the pre-season expectations, that defeat would mark the low point of Jonathan Gannon’s tenure. It would amplify the questions, those familiar ones about where they go from here.
Then the Cardinals went up, 21-3. They were in complete command — again, against the worst team in the NFL.
And somehow, they still lost, 22-21. Take all those pre-game assumptions about a defeat and multiply them by 10.
Then factor in how they lost. May as well multiply all of it by 100. This was, in the often miserable 38 seasons since the Cardinals moved to the desert, perhaps the most inexplicable loss the franchise has ever seen.
Here are some key takeaways from a stunning afternoon at State Farm Stadium:
How on earth?
Let’s recap how this happened.
The Cardinals went up 21-3 within the first 20 minutes. They were, finally, on track for a dominant win — the type of performance that could quiet the questions surrounding this team, even against the Titans.
Then their offense disappeared, marred by all sorts of procedural issues up front. Those frustrations put an end to the good vibes, but the win? That was never in doubt. Entering the fourth quarter, the Cardinals still led, 21-6.
Turns out, that was only the start.
With 12:40 remaining, Emari Demercado seemingly sealed the game with a 72-yard touchdown run — until he celebrated too early, fumbling through the back of the end zone. The gate was open, if only slightly.
“It would’ve been a three-score game,” Kyler Murray said. “Game probably over. … It definitely gave them a sense of life, hope. Which you can’t give teams in the NFL.”
The rollercoaster, as it turned out, was just beginning.
After a quick Titans touchdown drive, the Cardinals caught another break when Joey Slye missed the extra point, preserving their two-possession lead. It served as a nice reminder that both teams were trying to give this game away, in equal parts.
The Cardinals, though, weren’t going to let anyone match their philanthropy. Not on this day.
Their next act was almost impossible to believe. With 4:39 to play, Dadrion Taylor-Demerson intercepted Cam Ward in the red zone, again seemingly securing the win. But as he went to ground, he fumbled the ball, watched a teammate kick it into the end zone and saw Tyler Lockett pounce for a mind-boggling touchdown.
Still, the Cardinals had a chance to ice the game on offense. But facing third-and-8 in their own territory, they decided to run the ball, ceding possession as a raucous stream of boos rained down.
The only relatively normal aspect of the collapse was the end, as the Titans methodically marched 73 yards in 10 plays, setting up the Cardinals’ third loss by walk-off field goal in as many weeks.
“Why did it have to be close?” left tackle Paris Johnson said. “Even if this was a win. Why do we have to be close? With this being a loss, that’s the thing that we’re allowing to happen. Putting the ball in other people’s hands.”
How does this keep happening?!
Cardinals RB Emari Demercado drops the ball before he crosses the end zone, as shown on the CBS replays. 🏈🤦 #NFL pic.twitter.com/XRTHfRZvBC
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 5, 2025The Cardinals beat themselves with sloppiness
After the Cardinals went up 21-3, their next eight drives each featured at least one negative play — either a sack, a penalty or turnover.
The Cardinals could not get out of their own way, with the most notable example coming on a red-zone fumble. Because of a miscommunication up front, Murray wasn’t ready for the snap, which hit off his facemask, giving the Titans their easiest takeaway of the season.
The play that Gannon chose to highlight came on the first snap after Murray briefly went to the locker room with a foot injury. Facing third-and-9, the Cardinals lined up in an illegal formation and had an ineligible man downfield. Somehow, they still had no open receivers, forcing Murray to throw his pass into the dirt.
“We’ve gotta do a better job there,” Gannon said. “Day one install. Get lined up where we need to. Get lined up so we can get off the play, and we’re not all discombobulated. So it ultimately falls on me to coach better so our guys know exactly what to do on a day one install play.”
The Cardinals committed 11 penalties in the game (eight accepted), with the majority falling on the offensive line. That group was flagged for two false starts, two holdings, one illegal formation and one ineligible man downfield. Demercado also committed a hold, and the punt protection unit was called for another illegal formation.
“It’s on me,” Gannon said. “I’ve gotta go back to my drawing board and do a better job because it’s unacceptable.”
Gannon, though, said that he still feels good about the offensive coaching staff, which includes maligned offensive coordinator Drew Petzing.
“We have spurts in games that we can do whatever we want right now,” Gannon said. “We’ve just gotta put it together for four quarters.”
Ok wait so, Arizona gets the interception which would ice the game, but then they fumble the ball back…. And then Tyler Lockett jumps on it for a Tennessee touchdown !??! What just happened !!#NFL #Sunday
— CryptoMayers (@CryptoMayers) October 5, 2025Lack of aggression was a death knell
For the fourth time in five weeks, the Cardinals’ offense had a chance to seal the win on its terms. And for the fourth time in five weeks, the Cardinals ceded the ball back to their opponent, keeping a game alive.
In their first two games, they escaped anyway. But in Week 3 against the 49ers and now in Week 5 against the Titans, that wastefulness has come back to cost Arizona.
This may have been the most egregious example yet.
With a new set of downs on their own 33-yard line, the Cardinals elected to run on all three plays — including a third-and-8 with 2:12 left. Because the 2-minute warning was looming, a run cost the Panthers a mere 12 seconds compared to an incomplete pass, while essentially conceding possession.
“You give the ball back to the other team with (two minutes), whatever it was left, yeah, there’s a chance you’re gonna lose the game,” Murray said.
Even Gannon, typically a staunch advocate of Petzing, did not sound pleased with the playcall, although he acknowledged he had a role in any decision.
“Did we put them in the best chance to gain a first down there?” Gannon said. “I don’t know. We’ve gotta look at it.”
Will Hernandez made his impact felt
One key turning point in the game: right guard Will Hernandez hitting his snap limit.
Per the CBS broadcast, the Cardinals entered the day planning to use Hernandez in a limited fashion, as he made his return after missing a year with a torn ACL.
On the four drives he played, the Cardinals averaged 7.9 yards per play and scored 21 points. For the rest of the game, the Cardinals averaged 4.5 yards per play and scored 0 points.
That change was, of course, not all down to the performance of Hernandez’s replacement, Jon Gaines II. But the Cardinals’ entire offensive operation cratered after Hernandez departed. They stopped creating holes in the running game. They stopped giving Murray time to push the ball downfield. They started committing far too many penalties, including the pre-snap violations that Jonathan Gannon describes as “non-negotiables.”
And they ended with a loss that marked a new low point in Gannon’s tenure.
Defense wasn’t blameless
For all the concern over the Cardinals’ offensive performance, the defense played its part in the collapse. In the fourth quarter, it allowed the Titans to gain 212 yards on 25 plays.
This is now the third time in as many weeks that the defense has allowed an opposing offense to drive for a walk-off field goal. Those are difficult situations, especially when the offense is consistently putting its defense on the field.
But the Cardinals invested significant resources in their defense this offseason to make it an impact unit. Through five weeks, it’s merely been average.
“Collectively, we have to do a better job,” Gannon said. “And it feels like that’s now three games in a row that I’m saying the same thing. But until we do a better job, we’re gonna keep losing.”