Happy Monday! I hope you had a great weekend.

I’ll get to the Cardinals below, but first, it was at least a slightly better sports weekend than previous ones, although not by much. The Sun Devils earned a season-defining win over No. 7 Texas Tech on Saturday, re-establishing themselves in the Big 12 championship race with plenty of football still to play.

Yes, the Cardinals and Wildcats both lost, but it could be worse, though — did you see the New York Giants allowed the Broncos to score 33 points in the fourth quarter en route to a one-point win?! What a bonkers comeback.

Let’s make it a good week. On to the show!

Cardinals Lose Fifth Straight After Blowing Yet Another Fourth Quarter Lead

It is often said the definition of insanity is watching a failed action over and over while expecting a different result.

If that’s the truth, then being a Cardinals fan this season is truly insane.

Arizona lost 27-23 to Green Bay yesterday, suffering its fifth straight defeat in the same, agonizing fashion. Perhaps more painful is the Cardinals’ margin of defeat over that stretch, losing by a combined 13 points, all while becoming the first team in NFL history to lose three straight while leading in the fourth quarter in each of those games.

Crazy, indeed.

The loss is damaging for the 2-5 Cardinals, who are in dead last in the NFC West heading into a much-needed bye week.

Cardinals Defense Again Can’t Come Up With Critical Stop When Needed

Here are some of the biggest takeaways from Sunday’s loss:

• Defense folds yet again in crunch time

The past five games don’t just come down to the defense’s performance late in games — the fact that the margin of defeat has been so close commands some respect, in fact — but the opposition’s lack of faith in Arizona’s D was on full display late in the fourth when Green Bay faced fourth-and-two from the Cardinals 29 yard line.

Though the Packers initially lined up for what would have been a game-tying field goal with 2:32 to play, coach Matt Lafleur called timeout and then subsequently sent Jordan Love and the offense back on the field. The result? A 15-yard completion, a first down, and three plays later, a touchdown.

The Arizona defense played well all day, limiting Love and Co. to just 262 total yards. It just could not come up with the stop when it needed it most … yet again.

• Brissett again solid, comes up just short

Kyler Murray missed his second consecutive game, and backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett filled in admirably yet again. The veteran QB was 25-for-36 for 279 yards and two touchdowns, finishing with a rating of 110.8 while continuing to keep the position stable until Murray is healthy enough to return.

Brissett’s only turnover came in the form of a third quarter strip sack, and his end-of-game effort again came up short with the team desperately needing a touchdown. But he was good enough for Arizona to come away with a win, had the defense held up just one more drive in the final frame.

• Rushing attack continues to struggle

James Conner (out for season) and Trey Benson (out) continue to be missed, as the Cardinals managed just 94 yards and no touchdowns on 28 total rushing attempts. Rookie Bam Knight led with 57 yards on 14 carries, while Brissett chipped in 26 yards on six carries.

Michael Carter accumulated just 11 yards on seven attempts.

Benson’s return can’t come soon enough, but credit Brissett for his effectiveness through the air. Four different receivers finished with 40-or-more yards, while tight end Trey McBride had a career day with his first-ever two touchdown game.

Tech it to the Limit: Huge win for the Sun Devils on Saturday over No. 7 Texas Tech, as ASU took full advantage of the Red Raiders’ injury woes to come away with a 26-22 win. The victory not only re-inserts the Sun Devils into the Big 12 title conversation, but it also simultaneously gave Tech its first loss of the season, kicking off what might be another year of conference craziness.

Arizona State is back in the AP Top 25 as a result, checking in at No. 24, and hosts 6-1 Houston this weekend with a shot at another meaningful win.

Another Cougars Loss: The Wildcats lost to a Cougars team for the second straight week, this time falling to Houston 31-28 after a walk-off field goal iced the game. Arizona rallied from a 14-point fourth quarter deficit to tie the game, but Houston answered with a 13-play, 52-yard drive to set up the winning field goal as time wound down.

It was yet another close defeat for Arizona, which is 4-3 overall and 1-3 in the Big 12. The Wildcats now have a bye week before picking things back up against Colorado in Boulder next week.

On a happy note, Arizona basketball is back, and the Wildcats topped St. Mary’s 81-68 in an exhibition game on Saturday.

We are so Back: The Suns’ regular season kicks off on Wednesday this week, as Phoenix hosts Sacramento in Jordan Ott’s head coaching debut. No one quite knows what to expect out of the new-look Suns this season, but make sure to keep up with our amazing PHNX Suns crew for all the latest!

Can’t wait for Wednesday!

Closing in: Rising FC edged out San Antonio 1-0 on Saturday, inching the club closer to a postseason berth as the regular season begins to wind down. Charlie Dennis scored early to put Rising FC on top, and that was the only offense that was ultimately needed en route to the win.

Phoenix is fifth in the USL Western Conference table and has a three-point lead over ninth-place Lexington FC.

Definitely not a record we wanted to see.