The 2021 season was the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

' 102nd season in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL), their 34th in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

and their third under

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

Kliff Kingsbury Kliff Timothy Kingsbury (born August 9, 1979) is an American football coach and former quarterback who is the head coach for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He was previously a collegiate football coach from 2008 to ...

. They improved from their 8–8 season from the previous year with a 23–13 victory over the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

in Week 11. The Cardinals started 7–0 for the first time in 47 years when they were based in St. Louis. With their week 11 win over their division rivals, the Seattle Seahawks, the Cardinals improved on their record from the previous year and clinched their first winning season since

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

. Despite a loss to the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

in Week 16, the Cardinals clinched a playoff berth for the first time since

after the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

lost to the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division. The Rams play ...

. Despite an impressive 7–0 start and acquiring All-Pros

J. J. Watt Justin James Watt (born March 22, 1989) is an American football defensive end for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Central Michigan and Wisconsin and was drafted by the Houston Texans i ...

and

A. J. Green Adriel Jeremiah Green (born July 31, 1988) is an American football wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Georgia Bulldogs football, Georgia and was drafted by the Cincinnati ...

prior to the season starting, the team suffered their second consecutive late-season collapse, only winning four out of their last ten games and dropping to the fifth seed. In the Wild Card playoffs, the Cardinals fell to the

rival A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant o ...

on their way to win

Super Bowl LVI Super Bowl LVI was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2021 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Los Angeles Rams defeated the American Football Conference ...

. In the offseason,

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...

Patrick Peterson Patrick De'mon Peterson Jr. (born July 11, 1990) is an American football cornerback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU, where he won the Chuck Bednarik Award as the best defensive ...

was lost to free agency after 10 years, and wide receiver

Larry Fitzgerald Larry Darnell Fitzgerald Jr. (born August 31, 1983) is a former American football wide receiver. Fitzgerald played in the National Football League for 17 seasons with the Arizona Cardinals. He played college football at University of Pittsb ...

chose not to sign with any team after 17 years with the franchise.

Roster changes

Signings

Trades

*March 17: The Cardinals traded a third–round pick in

2021 NFL Draft The 2021 NFL Draft was the 86th National Football League Draft, the annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2021 NFL season. The draft was held in Cleveland from April 29 to May 1, 2021 ...

to the

Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West divis ...

for C

Rodney Hudson William Rodney Hudson (born July 12, 1989) is an American football center for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Florida State, and was a two-time All-American. He was drafted by the Kan ...

. *March 25: The Cardinals traded C

Mason Cole Mason Cole (born March 28, 1996) is an American football center for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Michigan. He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round of the 2018 NFL ...

to the

for a sixth–round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. *October 15: The Cardinals traded a fifth-round pick in

2022 NFL Draft The 2022 NFL Draft was the 87th edition of the National Football League's annual draft and was held from April 28–30, 2022, at the Caesars Forum on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The first round was held on Thursday, April 28, and w ...

and CB

Tay Gowan Tay Gowan (born January 7, 1998) is an American football cornerback for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at UCF and was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Dr ...

to the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

for

Tight End The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

Zach Ertz Zachary Adam Ertz (born November 10, 1990) is an American football tight end for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the second round of the 2013 NFL draft and later won Supe ...

Draft

;Notes * The Cardinals traded their third-round selection to the

in exchange for the Raiders' seventh-round selection, originally from the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...

, and

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

. * The Cardinals traded their

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

second-round selection, their 2021 fourth-round selection, and

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

David Johnson to the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

in exchange for wide receiver

DeAndre Hopkins DeAndre Rashaun Hopkins (born June 6, 1992) is an American football wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Clemson and was drafted by the Houston Texans in the first round o ...

and the Texans' 2020 fourth-round selection. *The Cardinals traded their fifth-round pick and a 2022 fourth-round selection to the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

in exchange for a fourth-round pick and a sixth-round pick. * The Cardinals traded their sixth-round selection to the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

in exchange for

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...

Markus Golden Markus Golden (born March 13, 1991) is an American football outside linebacker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Missouri and was drafted by the Cardinals in the second round of the ...

Staff

Final roster

Preseason

The Cardinals' preseason schedule was announced on May 12.

Regular season

Schedule

The Cardinals'

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

schedule was announced on May 12. Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: at Tennessee Titans

Week 2: vs. Minnesota Vikings

Week 3: at Jacksonville Jaguars

The Cardinals earned their first 3–0 start since

Week 4: at Los Angeles Rams

With the win, the Cardinals not only improved to 4–0 for the first time since

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, but earned their first victory over the Rams since Week 17 of the

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

season. Also, with the Broncos, the Raiders, and the Panthers losing their first games of the season, the Cardinals became the last undefeated team in the NFL.

Week 5: vs. San Francisco 49ers

Week 6: at Cleveland Browns

The Cardinals started 6–0 for the first time since 1974.

Week 7: vs. Houston Texans

The Arizona Cardinals played the

at home. This was the first game where former Texans DeAndre Hopkins and JJ Watt played against their former team, as well as tight end Zach Ertz's debut with the Cardinals.

Week 8: vs. Green Bay Packers

The Packers handed the Cardinals their first loss to deny them a perfect season with a 24–21 victory on

Thursday Night Football ''Thursday Night Football'' (often abbreviated as ''TNF'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games that broadcast primarily on Thursday nights. Most of the games kick off at 8:15 Eastern Time (8:20 prior to 20 ...

, despite entering the game without their top three wide receivers -- Allen Lazard and All-Pro WR Davante Adams missed the game due to COVID protocols, while Marquez Valdes-Scantling was still recovering from a groin injury suffered in Week 3. Kyler Murray had the ball with time winding down, and the ball in field goal range, but a pass intended for wide receiver

was picked off in the endzone by Packers cornerback

Rasul Douglas Rasul Douglas (born August 29, 1995) is an American football cornerback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at West Virginia, and was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the third round o ...

, who began the season on the Cardinals practice squad.

Week 9: at San Francisco 49ers

Despite

Kyler Murray Kyler Cole Murray (born August 7, 1997) is an American football quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). Following a stint at Texas A&M University, Texas A&M, Murray played college football at University of Okl ...

and

not playing, the Cardinals dominated the game to sweep the season series for the first time since 2018. With the win, the Cardinals improved to 8–1 and tied their 8-win mark from the previous season.

Week 10: vs. Carolina Panthers

Week 11: at Seattle Seahawks

With this win the Cardinals improved to 9-2 and secured their first winning season since 2015.

Week 13: at Chicago Bears

Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins returned to the field after the bye and connected for a 21-yard touchdown in the first quarter.

Week 14: vs. Los Angeles Rams

Week 15: at Detroit Lions

Despite the Cardinals being the favorite to win, the 1-11-1

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...

blew them out 30-12 in an unexpected loss. The Lions opened the scoring in the first quarter via a 37-yard field goal by

Riley Patterson Riley Patterson (born September 7, 1999) is an American football placekicker for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Memphis. High school career Patterson played high school footbal ...

. The Lions scored 14 points in the second quarter via a 37-yard touchdown pass from

Jared Goff Jared Thomas Goff (born October 14, 1994) is an American football quarterback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at California, where he set the Pac-12 Conference season records for passing ...

Amon-Ra St. Brown Amon-Ra Julian Heru J. St. Brown (born October 24, 1999) is an American football wide receiver for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at USC and was drafted by the Lions in the fourth round of ...

and a 22-yard touchdown pass from Goff to

Josh Reynolds Josh Reynolds may refer to: * Josh Reynolds (American football) (born 1995), American football wide receiver * Josh Reynolds (rugby league) (born 1989), Australian rugby league player * Josh Reynolds (rugby union) (born 1998), Welsh rugby union pla ...

, which made the score 17–0 in favor of Detroit at half-time. The Cardinals finally got on the board in the third quarter via a 29-yard field goal by

Matt Prater Matthew Phillip Prater (born August 10, 1984) is an American football placekicker for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). Regarded as one of the best long distance kickers in NFL history, he held the NFL record for lon ...

. The Lions extended their lead via a six-yard touchdown pass from Goff to Jason Cabinda. The Cardinals responded with a 29-yard field goal by Prater. The Lions extended their lead in the fourth quarter via a 47-yard field goal by Patterson. The Cardinals responded with a 26-yard touchdown pass from

Christian Kirk Christian Davon Kirk (born November 18, 1996) is an American football wide receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Texas A&M Aggies football, Texas A&M, and was selected by the A ...

. The Lions scored the final points of the game via a 45-yard field goal by Patterson, making the final score 30–12 in favor of Detroit. With the loss, Arizona fell to 10-4, marking their only road game loss in 2021.

Week 16: vs. Indianapolis Colts

NFL on Christmas Day Games held by the National Football League (NFL) on Christmas Day, December 25, are an occasional part of the league's schedule. In contrast to Thanksgiving Day games, however, they are not an annual occurrence, since Thanksgiving is always on a ...

Week 17: at Dallas Cowboys

With the win, the Cardinals finished a league-best 8–1 on the road.

Week 18: vs. Seattle Seahawks

With the loss, the Cardinals finished the season 11–6, earning a Wildcard spot in the

2021–22 NFL playoffs The National Football League playoffs for the 2021 season. This was the first time that the league featured a 17-game regular season schedule, and consequently the start of the playoffs was pushed a week later to January 15, 2022. The postseason ...

as the 5th seed.

Standings

Division

Conference

Postseason

Game summaries

NFC Wild Card Playoffs: at (4) Los Angeles Rams

Statistics

Team

Individual

''Statistics correct as of the end of the

2021 NFL season The 2021 NFL season was the 102nd season of the National Football League (NFL). The season was the first to feature a 17-game regular season schedule as the league expanded the season from 16 games. The regular season started on September 9, ...

References

External links

* {{2021 NFL season by team

Arizona Cardinals seasons