👋 GOOD MORNING – SIGH. Here we go again. The weekend is over, and the Arizona Cardinals have, for the eighth time, turned our Sundays sour. At least the Suns came through.
Thankfully, there was quite a bit of positive action from Arizona’s other teams this weekend. We’ll get to that after we talk about another gross Cardinals loss.
Let’s get to the action!
— Alex D’Agostino, PHNX Sports Daily Editor
Cardinals’ Defense Dominates, Offense Falls Short
We’ve been begging for this Cardinals defense to step up to the plate and deliver a grand slam — and they did just that! Four turnovers (see what I did there?) was an extremely welcome sight.
But, in true 2025 Cardinals fashion, the excellent defensive performance was wasted by a rough offensive performance. Even when gifted their second (and third) chance to go and win the game with the football, a carousel of bizarre play calls and decisions put a punctuation mark on an overtime heartbreaker.
Arizona’s offense certainly had a rough time all game. They managed just seven offensive points as a result of those four turnovers.
But it was the final two drives that stood out as the most game-losing factors of Sunday’s contest.
We’ll get to the top performances and highlights, but first, let’s take a look at the missed opportunities.
Cardinals Squander Late-Game Opportunities
So, the score is 24-21 in favor of the Jaguars, and Arizona’s defense comes up with a massive fourth-down stop in the red zone. A touchdown wins the game, a field goal sends it to overtime.
Jacoby Brissett and co. manage to drive all the way down to the opposing 11 yard line after WR Michael Wilson picked up a huge gain.
Then, Wilson spins the ball in celebration. Then, Arizona chooses not to spike the ball. Instead they throw an incomplete pass and settle for a field goal.
The game was decided mostly in that moment. Going for the win in regulation is almost always the better decision.
But to the defense’s credit, they held Jacksonville to a field goal to begin OT. Arizona could walk the game off with a touchdown.
THEN… on 4th and 4 and in Jags territory… Brissett heaves a deep ball to Xavier Weaver in double coverage, which was broken up. It seems as if there may have been a more efficient way to get four yards. Game over.
Wow.
My Take: The players themselves deserve some ownership, absolutely. But the end of Sunday’s game was poor management and decision-making by the coaching staff. The play calls were poor, it appeared the Cardinals were unprepared for the fire-drill situation in the end of regulation, and a game that Arizona absolutely earned a victory in defensively was thrown away.
Jonathan Gannon is going to stick to his guys. He told reporters after the game that he loved the final play call. But it just seemed as if Arizona was unprepared to make the right plays in the right moments. I’m not a coach, but I probably wouldn’t call a deep shot needing four yards to stay alive, either.
It’s hard to find the right words to describe this game. It just felt like an inevitability. No matter how close the Cardinals come to a win, it feels like you can always count on them to make the exact wrong play or decision in the biggest moments.
This season just keeps getting uglier. But enough bemoaning. Let’s at least take a look at some top performers.
Cardinals Top Performances
WR Michael Wilson – Serving as WR1 for the second game in a row, Wilson racked up 118 yards on 10 receptions, including the play that should have set up a regulation win.
DL Walter Nolen III – Nolen made an unbelievable play in the first quarter, hauling in a loose ball with one hand while engaged with a blocker and somehow finding the end zone for his first career TD. Unfortunately, he’d leave with a knee injury not long after.
S Budda Baker – Nine total tackles, a sack and his first interception since the 2022 season.
S Jalen Thompson – Nine tackles, a pass defended and the strip-sack that led to Nolen’s TD.
LB Akeem Davis-Gaither – Seven tackles and an acrobatic interception.
QUICK HITS
Dub-le Trouble: The Suns won both of their weekend contests — the first coming in the form of a thrilling last-minute comeback. After squandering a massive lead and trailing by eight with 45 seconds to play on Friday, they somehow got it done for a 114-113 win over the Timberwolves. Collin Gillespie hit the game-winner to cap a 20-point night, but it was a group effort.
Phoenix followed up with a sturdy 111-102 win over the Wemby-less Spurs. Dillon Brooks and Devin Booker accounted for 25 and 24 points respectively, and Jordan Goodwin (getting his first start) had 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Return of the Mac: The Diamondbacks re-signed veteran backup catcher James McCann on Friday — a one-year, $2.75 million deal worth up to $3.25 million. Arizona retains a valuable (in more ways than one) veteran presence at an affordable cost, and the offseason is officially underway.
The D-backs tendered contracts to all eight of their arb-eligible players: Jake McCarthy, Alek Thomas, Gabriel Moreno, Ryne Nelson, Pavin Smith, A.J. Puk, Kevin Ginkel and Ryan Thompson.
The roster casualties included two non-tenders: LHP Tommy Henry and RHP Taylor Rashi. Henry had just been DFA, while the Rashi decision comes as a bit of a surprise.
Taking Care of Business: The Sun Devils struggled a bit early on with Deion Sanders and the scuffling Colorado Buffaloes, but turned a tight game into a 42-17 blowout. RB Raleek Brown dominated the ground game with an immense 255 yards (and a touchdown) on 22 carries, while the defense picked up four sacks and a fumble. Next up… defend the Territorial Cup.
The Sun Devil women’s basketball won in thrilling fashion over UNLV, as senior guard Marley Washenitz chucked a prayer at the buzzer to earn the 56-53 win. Seriously, you have to see this:
ASU men’s hoops will take on the Texas Longhorns on the road at 9:00 p.m. Arizona time (sigh)
Cruisin’ Cats: Wildcat football officially doubled 2024’s win total (8-3) in what eventually became a 41-17 blowout over the Baylor Bears. On senior day, senior DBs Dalton Johnson (18 tackles) and Treydan Stukes (interception) stood out in their final home game. WR Kris Hutson had 133 yards and a touchdown, and RB Ismail Mahdi had 93 yards and a score. Next up… reclaim the Territorial Cup.
Wildcat women’s basketball advanced to 4-0 with a 87-76 win over NAU and a 27-point performance by Mickayla Perdue.
The top-five-ranked men’s squad will take on Denver at McKale Center tonight at 8:30 p.m.
