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👋 GOOD MORNING
Monday, Jan. 6, 2025 — Happy Monday! The Cardinals wrapped up their 2025 season with a 47-24 win over San Francisco, and now head into yet another long offseason with a healthy dose of questions. Is Jonathan Gannon the right coach? Is Kyler Murray a true franchise QB? Would love to hear your thoughts on this, so it’s the topic of our fan poll at the bottom of this email. Sound off!
Haven’t talked hockey in a while, so before we get to the main event, quick shoutout to the ASU men’s hockey team, which not only won its own tournament for the second consecutive season (Desert Hockey Classic), but shut out No. 16 Cornell 4-0 at Mullett Arena on Saturday. ASU has won nine straight games (including two exhibition matchups against USNTDP), and currently occupy THIRD PLACE in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC), one of the best conferences in the country.
The Sun Devils are ahead of blue blood programs such as St. Cloud State and Denver — the defending national champions — and are 15th in the PairWise rankings, a critical metric when it comes to qualifying for the Division I Men’s Hockey Championship. Up Next? North Dakota, who happens to be ahead of Arizona State in the conference, as well as USCHO.com rankings (14th).
Look for more about the ASU hockey team in a future edition of the PHNX Daily.
On to the show!
3 Things for Cardinals Fans to be Excited About
The 2024 NFL season is in the books for the Arizona Cardinals.
In many ways, the season felt like a failure. It was a roller coaster of ups-and-downs, magnified by a 2-5 finish following their bye in week 11. That makes the season a bitter pill to swallow considering Arizona controlled its own destiny at 6-4 as the NFC West leaders, but that proved to be a mirage after consecutive losses to Seattle, Minnesota and Seattle again.
“We want to be playing next week. We didn’t reach that, we didn’t reach out goal,” quarterback Kyler Murray said. “But I know we’re heading in the right direction.”
For what it’s worth, the Cardinals were playing meaningful games in December for the first time in years. As we reflect on yet another NFL season, we’re looking at the positives from the season, and how Arizona can use 2024 as a springboard to future success.
This Year’s Team Improved Over Last Year’s Team
An 8-9 record doesn’t exactly jump off the page, but when you consider the Cardinals have (a) won as many games as the past two years combined, and (b) their final four losses were each one-score games, there’s no doubt the team has improved year-over-year.
Whether that success translates to a playoff run next season remains to be seen, but the team has not regressed.
Perhaps just as important, Arizona finished 3-3 in the division after an 0-6 mark last year.
Of course, its third-place finish this season has one downside: A slightly more difficult schedule next year. Arizona will have a home game against the Packers (as opposed to the Bears) and road games against the Bengals and Cowboys (as opposed to the Browns and Giants).
A marginally stronger finish was little consolation at the season’s conclusion, though.
“I just told the team, obviously, I’m not going to get into the future, but we didn’t accomplish what we wanted to accomplish this year,” head coach Jonathan Gannon said. “That stings, but I’m proud of them. They fought, they battled.”
The Cardinals will also host four other non-division opponents: The Falcons, Panthers, Jaguars and Titans, in addition to their NFC West schedule. They’ll face the Texans, Colts, Buccaneers and Saints on the road, in addition to the Bengals, Cowboys, and division foes.
There’s no easy schedule in the NFL, but it’s also not a list of juggernauts, and leaves opportunity for an improved Cards team to make some noise.
“I think we’re literally a couple plays away from being a 10-win team,” Murray said. “I think we all have to look into the mirror and see how we can be better next year, me included.”
McBride is a Beast, and Marvin Harrison Jr. Showed Positive Steps
Harrison Jr. was supposed to make Murray’s life a lot easier, and it took some time, but the rookie wideout showed development as the season wore on. That was especially evident in his 96-yard output against the Rams on Dec. 28, and he did eclipse 100 yards twice this season.
In Sunday’s win over San Francisco he caught his eighth touchdown of the season, tying the team’s rookie record set by both Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin, joining some pretty impressive company.
There’s plenty of room to grow, and Harrison Jr. is entering a critical offseason for his development. Even so, he has started to look more comfortable on a weekly basis, and the Ohio State product showed flashes of just how dynamic he can be.
He’s got some pieces around him that are only going to get better, too.
McBride demonstrated his team-first mentality in Sunday’s victory, sacrificing personal stats to run a route designed to free up Greg Dortch in the second quarter. That selflessness paid off, though, as McBride hauled in a score of his own, marking his second consecutive game with a touchdown reception after going nearly the entire season without one.
Murray will have no shortage of players to throw to next season.
“The foundation, I feel like we’re on the right track,” he said. “Excited about where we’re going.”
Key Core Players Are Locked Up
Barring any crazy offseason moves, the Cardinals will have a strong sense of continuity heading into the 2025 NFL season.
That cannot be overlooked.
They have already locked up a number of key contributors to contract extensions before or during this past season, including running back James Conner, safety Budda Baker and center Hjalte Froholdt.
Conner, who didn’t play in the season finale, recorded his second consecutive 1,000 yard season and is locked up through the end of the 2026 season. Froholdt has been a rock for the Cardinals and is also under contract through the end of 2026, while Baker — the heart and soul of the defense — will stay in the desert through the end of 2027.
Oh, by the way, the Cards have two Pro Bowlers this year — Baker and the aforementioned McBride. That’s a lot to be optimistic about heading into the offseason.
There have been plenty of rumblings around potential trades and what next year’s team will look like, but assuming all things remain equal, the team has laid the foundation for a bright 2025.
And building on that foundation begins immediately.
“I will say this,” Gannon said. “The work will start tomorrow morning.”
🧢 TIP OF THE HAT BY BRANDED BILLS
Beautiful catch from Marvin Harrison Jr, as he tied Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin for the most receiving touchdowns by a Cardinals rookie.
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