Arizona Cardinals
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- For the Major League Baseball team that plays in St. Louis, see St. Louis Cardinals.
| Year founded: 1898 | |||||
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| City | Glendale, Arizona | ||||
| Other nicknames | The Cards, The Birds, Big Red | ||||
| Team colors | Cardinal Red, Black, and White | ||||
| Head Coach | Dennis Green | ||||
| Owner | Bidwill Family | ||||
| General manager | Rod Graves | ||||
| Mascot | Big Red | ||||
| League/Conference affiliations | |||||
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Independent (1898-1919)
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| Team history | |||||
| Championships | |||||
League Championships (2)
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| Conference Championships (0) | |||||
Division Championships (4)
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| Home fields | |||||
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The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. In 2006, the club began playing all home games at University of Phoenix Stadium in west suburban Glendale. The team's headquarters and practice facility are located in east suburban Tempe, where they have been located since relocating from St. Louis after the 1987 season. The Cardinals are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL).
The Cardinals are the oldest continuous professional American football club in the United States.[1][2][3] The team was formed in 1898 as the Morgan Athletic Club in Chicago. The club was then called the Racine Normals since they were originally located on Chicago's Racine Avenue (not Racine, Wisconsin, as mistaken by many). They then changed their name to the Racine Cardinals after they started wearing red uniforms, inherited from the collegiate Chicago Maroons.
After becoming a charter member of the NFL in 1920, the club was renamed the Chicago Cardinals. During the lean years of World War II it merged into the Pittsburgh Steelers and became one franchise usually referred to as Card-Pitt. The Cardinals moved to St. Louis, Missouri in 1960 becoming the St. Louis Cardinals. The club then relocated to the Phoenix metropolitan area in 1988, first playing at Sun Devil Stadium in the suburb of Tempe. The team was known as the Phoenix Cardinals before it started using "Arizona" in its name in 1994.
Despite moving to St. Louis and then to Arizona, the Cardinals had always remained in either an Eastern conference or division. When the league was divided into Eastern and Western conferences prior to the 1953 season, the Cardinals were placed in the East while the Chicago Bears were placed in the West. After the 1970 AFL-NFL Merger, the team was placed in the NFC East. The Cardinals were finally moved to the NFC West as part of the 2002 realignment.
The Cardinals have historically been known as a chronic loser. They were NFL Champions in 1925 and 1947 and last played for the NFL title in 1948. The team has not won a league title nor played in the championship game since then, and thus currently holds the NFL record for the longest championship drought. The team has also won only two division titles (1974 and 1975) since their 1947 NFL championship. Despite being the oldest existing professional football franchise in the United States, the Cardinals have an all-time postseason record of 2-5 (not counting the 1964 Bert Bell Benefit Bowl).
The Cardinals conduct their annual summer training camp at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff.
Contents |
[edit] Franchise history
[edit] Chicago years (1898-1959)
The Cardinals are the oldest existing football club in the United States, beginning as an amateur athletic club team in Chicago named the Morgan Athletic Club, which was founded by Chicago painter/builder Chris O'Brien in 1898. Early in the 20th century (by 1913), the team turned professional.
O'Brien later moved them to Chicago's Normal Field and renamed them the Racine Normals, since Normal Field was located on Racine Avenue in Chicago. In 1901, O'Brien bought used maroon uniforms from the University of Chicago, the colors of which had by then faded, leading O'Brien to exclaim, "That's not maroon, it's cardinal red!" It was then that the team changed its name to the Racine Cardinals.
The team disbanded in 1906 mostly for lack of local competition, but reformed in 1913. They were forced to suspend operations for a second time in 1918 due to World War I and the outbreak of the Spanish Flu Pandemic. They resumed operations later in the year, and have since operated continuously.
In 1920, the team became a charter member of the American Professional Football Association (which became the NFL in 1922), for a franchise fee of $100USD. The Cardinals and the Bears (originally founded as the Decatur Staleys before moving to Chicago in 1921) are the only charter members of the NFL still in existence, though the Green Bay Packers, who joined the league in 1921, existed prior to the formation of the NFL. The person keeping the minutes of the first league meeting, unfamiliar with the nuances of Chicago football, recorded the Cardinals as Racine, Wisconsin. The team was renamed the Chicago Cardinals in 1922 after a team from that city entered the league. That season the team moved to Comiskey Park.
The Staleys and Cardinals played each other twice in 1920[4] as the Racine Cardinals and the Decatur Staleys, making their rivalry the oldest in the NFL. They split the series, with the home team winning in each. In the Cardinals 7-6 victory over the Staleys in their first meeting of the season, each team scored a TD on a fumble recovery, with the Staleys failing their extra point try.[5]
The Cardinals' defeat of the Staleys proved critical, since George Halas' Staleys went on to a 10-1-2 record overall, 5-1-2 in league play. The Akron Pros were the first ever league champions, they finished with an 8-0-3 record, 6-0-3 in league play, ending their season in a 0-0 tie against the Staleys. Since the Pros merely had to tie the game in order to win the title, they could afford to play not to lose. Had the Staleys had not lost to the Cardinals, they would have gone into that fateful game with an 11-0-1 record, 6-0-1 in league play. As it was, it all but assured that the Staleys/Bears and Cardinals would be intense rivals.
The two teams played to a tie in 1921,[4] when the Bears won all but 2 games, thus the Cardinals came within 1 point of costing the Bears a second consecutive championship in the league's first 2 years of existence. In 1922, the Bears went 9-3-0,[6] losing to the Cardinals twice. The Bears still edged the Cardinals for 2nd place in the league, but those losses dashed all hopes of the Bears repeating as champions.[7] In 1923 and 1924, the Bears got the better of the Cardinals all 3 times the 2 teams played.[8][9] But in 1925, the Bears went 0-1-1 against the Cardinals with the tie meaning the Cardinals were only a 1/2 game in front of the Pottsville Maroons heading into their fateful 1925 showdown.[4]
Thus, in the first 6 years of the NFL's existence, the Bears-Cardinals games had a direct impact on the league championship 4 times. The Bears and Cardinals each took home 1 title during that span. But the Bears nearly cost the Cardinals their title, the Cardinals nearly cost the Bears their title and but for the Cardinals tenacity against the Bears, the Bears very well might have won 2 others. The Bears were such a dominant team against everyone but the Cardinals in those days that from 1920-1925 the Canton Bulldogs, champions in 1922 and 1923, beat them just 2 times and no other team in the NFL defeated the Bears more than once over that entire 6 year span...except the Cardinals.[4]
Legend has it that the Cardinals played the Chicago Tigers in 1920, with the loser being forced to leave town. While this has never been proven, the Tigers did disband after one season.
The Cardinals won their first NFL championship in 1925, finishing the season with a record of 11-2-1. In a controversial ruling by the league, the Pottsville Maroons, the team with the best record, had their franchise revoked for violating the territorial rights of the Frankford Yellow Jackets. Thus, the Cardinals won the 1925 title by default. (For more on the controversy, see Pottsville Maroons.)
The Cardinals posted a winning record only twice in the twenty years (1931 and 1935) after their championship—including 10 straight losing seasons from 1936 to 1945.
Dr. David Jones bought the team from O'Brien in 1929. In 1932 the team was purchased by Charles Bidwill, then a vice president of the Chicago Bears. The team has been under the ownership of the Bidwill family since then.
In 1944, owing to player shortages caused by World War II, the Cardinals and Pittsburgh Steelers merged for one year and were known as the "Card-Pitt", or derisively as the "Carpets" as they were winless that season.
The Cardinals won their last NFL championship game in 1947 (28-21 over the Philadelphia Eagles) with their "Million-Dollar Backfield", which included quarterback Paul Christman, halfback Charley Trippi, halfback Elmer Angsman, and fullback Pat Harder, piling up 282 rushing yards. However, Bidwill was not around to see it; he'd died before the season, leaving the team to his wife Violet. He had, however, beaten the Chicago Rockets of the upstart All-America Football Conference for the rights to Trippi. This signing is generally acknowledged as the final piece in the championship puzzle. They advanced to the championship game the next season, but lost 7-0 in a rematch with the Eagles, played in a heavy snowstorm that almost completely obscured the field. The next year, Violet Bidwill married St. Louis businessman Walter Wolfner.
The 1950s were dismal for the team, with only 33 victories for the decade. Most years found the Cardinals in last place and in their best year of the decade (1956), they finished in second with a 7-5 record. This poor performances, coupled with the near-mythic status of the Bears, resulted in a decline in attendance and revenue. The Bidwills engineered a deal with the NFL which sent the Cardinals to St. Louis beginning with the 1960 season, a move which doubled to block St. Louis as a market against the emerging American Football League.
[edit] St. Louis years (1960-1987)
During the Cardinals' stay in St. Louis, two major Cardinal teams (football and baseball) called the city home. Sports fans and local news broadcasters called them "the football Cardinals" or "the baseball Cardinals" to distinguish the two.
The new St. Louis football Cardinals were much improved, and the team was competitive for much of the 1960s. New stars emerged in Larry Wilson, Charley Johnson, Jim Bakken, Sonny Randle, and Jim Hart. In an era when only two or four teams qualified for the NFL playoffs, the Cardinals' playoff drought continued, though the team did advance to the Playoff Bowl in 1964.
Violet Bidwill Wolfner died in 1962, and her sons, Bill and Charles, Jr. took control. Bill Bidwill became sole owner in 1972 and still owns the team today. Only the New York Giants and Chicago Bears have been in the hands of one family longer than the Cardinals.
In 1973, Don Coryell became head coach and the Cardinals registered a 7-0 record to open the 1974 season. They won the NFC East and again in 1975, losing in the divisional playoffs both times. During this period, the Cardinals boasted an effective offense in the wake of a record-setting offensive line which included standouts Dan Dierdorf, Conrad Dobler, and Tom Banks. On Thanksgiving Day 1976, the Cardinals suffered a controversial loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Cardinal receiver Mel Gray was shoved out of the end zone on an apparent game-winning touchdown route in what appeared to all observers to be obvious interference, but a penalty was not called. With this loss, the Cardinals were not only dethroned from the divisional lead, but became the first NFC team to reach 10 wins without making the playoffs. Team stars from the 1970s included Terry Metcalf, Jim Otis, and Roger Wehrli.
During the Cardinals' stay in St. Louis, they advanced to the playoffs just three times. The team left St. Louis before the 1988 season, after Bidwill was unable to convince the city to build a new stadium.
In spite of what was considered lackluster performance in St. Louis, their overall record there, of 187 wins, 202 losses, and 13 ties (.481 winning percentage) is easily the highest winning percentage for any of the three locations that the Cardinals have been associated with. In Chicago they had a record of 163-247-25 for a .403 winning percentage, in Arizona (through 2005 season) a record of 100-188, or a .347 winning percentage.
[edit] Arizona years (1988-Present)
[edit] Early years (1988-97)
In 1988, the Cardinals moved to Arizona, and the Phoenix Cardinals started playing home games in Sun Devil Stadium on the campus of Arizona State University.
In March of 1994, in a move designed to better market the franchise to a statewide fan base, team owner Bill Bidwill announced his intention to change the name of the team to the Arizona Cardinals.[2] The rest of the NFL owners quickly approved the name change.
The Cardinals spent most of their first decade in Arizona as a cellar-dweller. This was in part because, in defiance of geographic reality, they remained in the NFC East—resulting in some of the longest road trips in the league. Attendance averaged roughly 35,000 in a 73,000-seat stadium, meaning that the Cardinals were seen on television at home twice a year at most. Bidwill ran the team in what many considered an excessively frugal manner. The high draft picks from those losing years, more often than not, left the franchise and enjoyed greater success with other teams. Joe Bugel coached from 1990 to 1993, usually finishing last in the dominant NFC East, which produced the Super Bowl winner in each of those seasons (Giants in '90, Redskins '91, Cowboys '92-93). Buddy Ryan replaced Bugel in 1994, serving as both general manager and head coach, but lasted 2 seasons. He infamously guaranteed victory in the 1994 Week 3 game at the Cleveland Browns, which Cleveland subsequently won, 32-0. Ryan was followed by Vince Tobin, under whom the Cardinals enjoyed brief success during the 1998 season.
[edit] Playoff year (1998)
During the 1998 season Jake Plummer enjoyed his greatest stretch of success during his tenure with the franchise, in terms of victories at least, as his quarterback rating was still an average 75.0. The team during that time had been dubbed the Cardiac Cards by the local and national media[10] as eight of their 16 regular-season games were decided by three points or less, and seven of those games ended in favor of the Cardinals. Solidifying their status as the team to beat in the clutch, as the Cardinals, with a 6-7 record going into the 15th week, won 3 straight games to clinch a playoff spot, including one that very week which had to be decided in overtime, and the total margin of those 3 victories was a mere 8 points.
This and the fact that none of their victories had been to teams with winning records made them heavy underdogs going into their Wild Card Playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys. Considering their two regular season losses to the Cowboys and the fact that they had been on the losing end of 16 of the last 17 games against their division rivals, including 9 straight losses at Texas Stadium,[11] the "Team of the Nineties" seemed to have history, among other forces, on their side. To further the situation, the Cardinals franchise had not won a single playoff game since their title year of 1947, resulting in the longest active drought in professional sports history.
However the final score made the game appear closer than it actually was, as Arizona dominated the Cowboys on both ends of the football throughout the game. At Texas Stadium that afternoon, the Cardinals jumped out to a 10-0 halftime lead. The Cardinals would later increase that lead to 20-0 in the final minutes of the 4th quarter. The Cowboys only score was a touchdown late in the 4th quarter, and the Cardinals held on for the upset. The Cardinals, who had suffered for 51 years as the NFL's doormat, finally had a playoff win. However, the distinction was short lived as the Cardinals fell in the divisional round of the playoffs to the Minnesota Vikings who possessed a 15-1 record as well as the highest scoring offense in NFL history. The Vikings won the game 41-21 in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis.[12]
[edit] Return to mediocrity (1999-2005)
Coming off of their playoff run in 1998, the Cardinals were expected to do bigger and better things in 1999, but a tough schedule ranked in the top 5 as well as key injuries returned the team to their losing ways, getting off to a 2-6 start. However, the Cards would make another run winning 4 straight to get back into the playoff chase, but this year it was not meant to be as Arizona lost their last 4 to finish with a disappointing 6-10 record.
Tobin was fired during the 2000 season and replaced by defensive coordinator Dave McGinnis, who remained head coach until his firing in 2003; McGinnis compiled a win-loss record of 17-40 during his tenure.
The Cardinals have not won more than seven games in a season since their 1998 playoff appearance, and have had one of the worst yearly attendance records in the NFL. Sun Devil Stadium has gained a reputation for being one of the quietest stadiums in the league (which is a far cry compared to ASU home games). The few fans who do show up for games are most often rooting for the away team, partially due to the fact that much of Arizona's population during the winter months is comprised of residents whose homestate lies elsewhere, creating such home games on the road for opposing teams. In addition, many of Arizona's permanent residents grew up in other states. Such incidents are most noticeable when teams with great national followings, such as the Packers, Bears, 49ers, Raiders, Patriots, Steelers and Cowboys, come into town.[13]
In 2004, the Cardinals hired former Vikings head coach Dennis Green as their head coach. Prior to his signing with the Cardinals, he compiled a 97-62 record in ten seasons with Minnesota (1992-2001), leading that franchise to four NFC Central Division titles and two NFC Championship games.
[edit] New stadium (2006)
In 2000, Maricopa County voters passed a ballot initiative by a margin of 51% to 49%, providing funding for a new Cardinals stadium (as well as for improvements to Major League Baseball spring training facilities in the greater Phoenix region; and youth recreation). After some legal obstacles, the Cardinals began construction of their new facility in April 2003, in Glendale, one of the western suburbs of Phoenix. University of Phoenix Stadium features a retractable roof and a slide-out grass surface, which is good for the hot desert weather; the new stadium has a state-of-the-art air conditioning system and high-back seats.
For some time, many team officials blamed Sun Devil Stadium for the Cardinals' woes. Playing in a college-owned stadium denied the Cardinals access to many revenue streams that other NFL teams took for granted.
The 63,500-seat stadium (expandable to 72,800) opened on August 12, 2006 when the Cardinals defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers, 21-13, in a preseason game. The Cardinals then hosted their first regular season opening day game since moving to the Phoenix area in 1988, defeating the San Francisco 49ers in a rematch of the 2005 blowout in Mexico City, 34-27, in front of a sellout crowd of 63,407. In 2008, the stadium will host Super Bowl XLII.
Despite the new stadium, the team has continued to struggle on the field, beginning the 2006 season with a 1-8 record, punctuated by a 24-23 loss to the Chicago Bears on October 16 (before a sellout crowd enjoying a rare Cardinals appearance on Monday Night Football) in which Arizona blew a 20-point lead in an extremely bizarre game as Chicago scored zero offensive touchdowns and the Cardinals led in several statistical categories including Time of Possession, Passing Yardage, Rushing Yardage, Giveaways, Takeaways, and Interceptions. Despite all the overwhelming statistical evidence the Bears capitalized on the two turnovers the Cardinals did commit, a pair of fumbles, and promptly returned them both for touchdowns. They also converted a Punt Return into a touchdown. The Cardinals had a chance to redeem themselves with a last minute field goal which would give them the victory, but their offense went into a conservative state and stalled just past midfield, which set up a 40 yard Field Goal attempt by Neil Rackers, which was wide left. Afterwards Dennis Green fired his Offensive Coordinator, as he and the media felt the blame had to fall on somebody, and the focal point was on the game's final drive with the conservative play calling being the reason behind the firing.
Additional stadium information may be found at http://www.azcardinals.com/stadium/design.php
[edit] Logo and uniforms
The team has used the cardinal red jerseys since Chris O'Brien bought them for the club in 1901. And for most of its history, the Cardinals have basically used the same basic uniform design of white helmets, white pants with red stripes on the sides, and either red or white jerseys.
Starting in 1947, the team had a logo of a cardinal bird perched on the stitches of a football. However, the club did not attach a logo to their helmets until they debuted a cardinal-head logo in 1960, the year the franchise moved from Chicago to St. Louis. When the Cardinals moved to Arizona in 1988, the flag of Arizona was added to the sleeves. And in 1990, the team began wearing red pants with their white jerseys.
In 2005, the team unveiled their first major changes in a century. The cardinal-head logo was updated to be sleeker and meaner.[14] Black was added as an accent color, while trim lines were added to the outside shoulders and sleeves, and the sides of the jerseys and pants. Both the red and white jerseys had the option of red or white pants, but coach Dennis Green opted to have the team wear only the white pants for the entire season.
Hoping to break a six-game losing streak, the Cardinals wore the red pants for the first time on October 29, 2006 in a game at Lambeau Field against the Green Bay Packers. The Packers won 31-14, and the Cards headed into their bye week with a 1-7 mark.
Since moving to the Phoenix area, the Cardinals practice what many other NFL teams located in subtropical climates traditionally do: wear their white jerseys at home during the first half of the season — forcing opponents to wear their dark ones under the hot autumns in Arizona. However, this tradition did not continue when the Cardinals moved to University of Phoenix Stadium in 2006, as early-season games are played with the roof closed. With the temperature inside at a comfortable 70 degrees, Green has opted to have the Cardinals wear their red jerseys at home full-time.
[edit] Season-by-season records
- Since 1920
- Does not include non-APFA/NFL games
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties
| Season | W | L | T | Finish | Playoff Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Cardinals (APFA) | |||||
| 1920 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 6th APFA1 | |
| 1921 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 9th APFA1 | |
| Chicago Cardinals (NFL) | |||||
| 1922 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3rd NFL | The NFL did not hold playoff games until 1932 |
| 1923 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 6th NFL | |
| 1924 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 8th NFL | |
| 1925 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 1st NFL2 | Named NFL Champions2 |
| 1926 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 10th NFL | |
| 1927 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 9th NFL | |
| 1928 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 9th NFL | |
| 1929 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 4th NFL | |
| 1930 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 7th NFL | |
| 1931 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 4th NFL | |
| 1932 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 7th NFL | -- |
| 1933 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 5th NFL West | -- |
| 1934 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 4th NFL West | -- |
| 1935 | 6 | 4 | 2 | T-3rd NFL West | -- |
| 1936 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 4th NFL West | -- |
| 1937 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 4th NFL West | -- |
| 1938 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 5th NFL West | -- |
| 1939 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 5th NFL West | -- |
| 1940 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 5th NFL West | -- |
| 1941 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 4th NFL West | -- |
| 1942 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 4th NFL West | -- |
| 1943 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 4th NFL West | - |
| Card-Pitt | |||||
| 1944 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 5th NFL West | -- |
| Chicago Cardinals | |||||
| 1945 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 5th NFL West | -- |
| 1946 | 6 | 5 | 0 | T-3rd NFL West | -- |
| 1947 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 1st NFL West | Won NFL Championship (Eagles) |
| 1948 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1st NFL West | Lost NFL Championship (Eagles) |
| 1949 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 3rd NFL West | -- |
| 1950 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 5th NFL AFC | -- |
| 1951 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 6th NFL AFC | -- |
| 1952 | 4 | 8 | 0 | T-5th NFL AFC | -- |
| 1953 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 6th NFL East | -- |
| 1954 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 6th NFL East | -- |
| 1955 | 4 | 7 | 1 | T-4th NFL East | -- |
| 1956 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2nd NFL East | -- |
| 1957 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 6th NFL East | -- |
| 1958 | 2 | 9 | 1 | T-5th NFL East | -- |
| 1959 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 6th NFL East | -- |
| St. Louis Cardinals | |||||
| 1960 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 4th NFL East | -- |
| 1961 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 4th NFL East | -- |
| 1962 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 6th NFL East | -- |
| 1963 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 3rd NFL East | -- |
| 1964 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 2nd NFL East | -- |
| 1965 | 5 | 9 | 0 | T-5th NFL East | -- |
| 1966 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 4th NFL East | -- |
| 1967 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 3rd NFL Century | -- |
| 1968 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 2nd NFL Century | -- |
| 1969 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 3rd NFL Century | -- |
| 1970 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 3rd NFC East | -- |
| 1971 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 1972 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 1973 | 4 | 9 | 1 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 1974 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 1st NFC East | Lost Divisional Playoffs (Vikings) |
| 1975 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 1st NFC East | Lost Divisional Playoffs (Rams) |
| 1976 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 3rd NFC East | -- |
| 1977 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 3rd NFC East | -- |
| 1978 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 1979 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 1980 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 1981 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 1982 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 6th NFC Conf. | Lost First Round (Packers) |
| 1983 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 3rd NFC East | -- |
| 1984 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 3rd NFC East | -- |
| 1985 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 1986 | 4 | 11 | 1 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 1987 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 3rd NFC East | - |
| Phoenix Cardinals | |||||
| 1988 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 1989 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 1990 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 1991 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 1992 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 1993 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| Arizona Cardinals | |||||
| 1994 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 3rd NFC East | -- |
| 1995 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 1996 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 1997 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 1998 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 2nd NFC East | Won Wild Card Playoffs (Cowboys) Lost Divisional Playoffs (Vikings) |
| 1999 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 2000 | 3 | 13 | 0 | 5th NFC East | -- |
| 2001 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 4th NFC East | -- |
| 2002 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 4th NFC West | -- |
| 2003 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 4th NFC West | -- |
| 2004 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 3rd NFC West | -- |
| 2005 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 3rd NFC West | -- |
| *2006 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 4th NFC West | -- |
| Totals | 450 | 657 | 38 | (1920-2006, regular season) | |
| 2 | 5 | 0 | (1920-2006, playoffs) | ||
| 452 | 662 | 38 | (all games, 1920-2006, including playoffs) | ||
* = Current Standing
1=The NFL was originally named the American Professional Football Association (APFA) from 1920-1922.
2=The Cardinals were named the 1925 NFL Champions as a result of the league's controversial ruling concerning the Pottsville Maroons.
[edit] Single season records
Passing
- Passing Yards: 4614 Neil Lomax (1984)
- Passing Touchdowns: 28 Charley Johnson (1963), Neil Lomax (1984)
Rushing
- Rushing Yards: 1605 Ottis Anderson (1979)
Receiving
- Receptions: 103 Larry Fitzgerald (2005)
- Receiving Yards: 1596 David Boston (2001)
Kicking
- Field Goals: 40* Neil Rackers (2005)
* NFL Record
[edit] Players of note
[edit] Current roster
[edit] Pro Football Hall of Famers
Chicago Cardinals
- Charles Bidwill, team owner
- 1 Jimmy Conzelman, QB-CB, head coach
- 1 John "Paddy" Driscoll, QB-S-K-P, head coach
- 2 Walt Kiesling, G-DT, head coach
- 4 Ernie Nevers, RB-S
- 13 Guy Chamberlin, TE-DE
- 33 Ollie Matson, RB
- 62 Charley Trippi, RB-QB
- 81 Dick "Night Train" Lane, CB
St. Louis Cardinals
- 8 Larry Wilson, S
- 72 Dan Dierdorf, OT
- 81 Jackie Smith, TE
These three, plus Conrad Dobler (66, G), Jim Hart (17, QB), and Jim Hanifan (Head Coach) have been inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.
Arizona Cardinals
- None as of the 2005 season.
[edit] Retired numbers
- 8 Larry Wilson (St. Louis)
- 40 Pat Tillman (Arizona)
- 77 Stan Mauldin (Chicago)
- 88 J.V. Cain (St. Louis)
- 99 Marshall Goldberg (Chicago)
[edit] Ring of Honor
The Cardinals' Ring of Honor was started in 2006 to mark the opening of University of Phoenix Stadium. It honors former Cardinal greats from all eras of the franchise's history. Following is a list of inductees and the dates that they were inducted.
- Charles Bidwill, Owner (8/12/2006)
- Jimmy Conzelman, Coach (8/12/2006)
- Dan Dierdorf, T (10/16/2006)
- John "Paddy" Driscoll, QB (8/12/2006)
- Marshall Goldberg, HB (8/12/2006)
- Dick "Night Train" Lane, DB (8/12/2006)
- Ollie Matson, HB (8/12/2006)
- Ernie Nevers, FB (8/12/2006)
- Charley Trippi, HB/QB (8/12/2006)
- Larry Wilson, S (9/10/2006)
- Pat Tillman, S (11/12/2006)
[edit] Other notable alumni
Chicago
St. Louis
- Ottis Anderson
- Jim Bakken
- Tom Banks
- Dave Butz
- Joe Childress
- Bobby Joe Conrad
- Conrad Dobler
- Pat Fischer
- Mel Gray
- Roy Green
- Jim Hart
- Charley Johnson
- E.J. Junior
- Neil Lomax
- Terry Metcalf
- Stump Mitchell
- Bobby Moore (later known as Ahmad Rashad)
- Jim Otis
- Sonny Randle
- J.T. Smith
- Roger Wehrli
Phoenix/Arizona
- David Boston
- Lomas Brown
- Larry Centers
- Boomer Esiason
- Ken Harvey
- Garrison Hearst
- Thomas Jones
- Dave Krieg
- Tim McDonald
- Jamir Miller
- Jim McMahon
- Rob Moore
- Joe Nedney
- Jay Novacek
- Michael Pittman
- Jake Plummer
- Ricky Proehl
- Simeon Rice
- Jay Schroeder
- Clyde Simmons
- Emmitt Smith
- James Smith
- Eric Swann
- Pat Tillman
- Tom Tupa
- Aeneas Williams
[edit] Head coaches
- Paddy Driscoll (1920-1922)
- Arnold Horween (1923-1924)
- Norman Barry (1925-1926)
- Guy Chamberlin (1927)
- Fred Gillies (1928)
- Dewey Scanlon (1929)
- Ernie Nevers (1929-1930)
- LeRoy Andrews (1931)
- Jack Chevigny (1932)
- Paul Schissler (1933-1934)
- Milan Creighton (1935-1938)
- Ernie Nevers (1939)
- Jimmy Conzelman (1940-1942)
- Phil Handler (1943-1945)
- Jimmy Conzelman (1946-1948)
- Curly Lambeau (1950-1951)
- Phil Handler (1951)
- Joe Kuharich (1952)
- Joe Stydahar (1953-1954)
- Ray Richards (1955-1957)
- Pop Ivy (1958-1961)
- Wally Lemm (1962-1965)
- Charley Winner (1966-1970)
- Bob Hollway (1971-1972)
- Don Coryell (1973-1977)
- Bud Wilkinson (1978-1979)
- Larry Wilson (interim) (1979)
- Jim Hanifan (1980-1985)
- Gene Stallings (1986-1989)
- Hank Kuhlmann (interim) (1989)
- Joe Bugel (1990-1993)
- Buddy Ryan (1994-1995)
- Vince Tobin (1996-1999)
- Dave McGinnis (2000-2003)
- Dennis Green (2004-present)
[edit] Current staff
- Head Coach - Dennis Green
- Offensive Coordinator - Mike Kruczek
- Defensive Coordinator - Clancy Pendergast
- Special Teams Coach - Gary Zauner
- Quarterbacks Coach - Mike Kruczek
- Running Backs Coach - Kirby Wilson
- Wide Receivers Coach - Mike Johnson
- Tight Ends Coach - Carl Hargrave
- Offensive Line Coach - Steve Loney
- Defensive Line Coach - Larry Brooks
- Linebackers Coach - Frank Bush
- Defensive Backs Coach - Richard Solomon
[edit] External links
- Arizona Cardinals official web site
- Arizona Cardinals News and Links
- Arizona Football League AzFL Cardinals News
- Complete Cardinals News Photos & Stories
- Arizona Cardinals Fansite at Yahoo!
- Sports E-Cyclopedia.com
- Cardinals Report at AzFL & S&E News
- Pro Football Reference, Cardinals index
- [1]
[edit] References
- ^ "NFL History 1896-1910", NFL.com
- ^ a b Arizona Cardinals team history, azcardinals.com
- ^ Arizona Cardinals team history, profootballhof.com
- ^ a b c d Pro Football Reference, Cardinals index
- ^ NFLHistory.net
- ^ Pro Football Reference, Bears index
- ^ Pro Football Reference 1922 year in review
- ^ Pro Football Reference 1923 year in review
- ^ Pro Football Reference 1924 year in review
- ^ "'Boys wary of cardiac Cards", ESPN.com December 29, 1998
- ^ National Football League (2004). 2004 NFL Record & Fact Book. Time Inc. Home Entertainment, 444. ISBN 1-931933-71-5.
- ^ National Football League (2004). 2004 NFL Record & Fact Book. Time Inc. Home Entertainment, 535. ISBN 1-931933-71-5.
- ^ Boeck, Greg "Cardinals Feel the Heat", USATODAY.com October 23, 2003
- ^ "Arizona brushes up logo of outdated bird", MSNBC.com Jan 29, 2005
| Chicago/St. Louis/Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals Head Coaches |
|---|
| Driscoll • Horween • Barry • Chamberlin • Gillies • Scanlon • Nevers • Andrews • Chevigny • Schissler • Creighton • Nevers • Conzelman • Handler • Conzelman • Lambeau • Handler • Kuharich • Stydahar • Richards • Ivy • Lemm • Winner • Hollway • Coryell • Wilkinson • Wilson • Hanifan • Stallings • Kuhlmann • Bugel • Ryan • Tobin • McGinnis • Green |
