The 5: History of Arizona Cardinals vs. NY Jets

When the Cardinals host the Jets Monday night at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, it will be just the ninth meeting between the two franchises and first in Arizona since 2004.

Quite simply, there is not much history between the teams.

What little history there is, perhaps not surprisingly, has not been too positive for the Cardinals. Arizona is just 2-6 all-time against the Jets, and has lost the last six meetings between the teams.

As it turns out, the teams have played just five times since the Cardinals moved to Arizona, which makes their brief history a good candidate for this week’s Five.

So, without further ado, here is a look at each of the five games the Cardinals have played against the Jets since moving to the desert in 1988.

1996 – Jets 31, Cardinals 21

Looking to even up their record at 4-4 in Vince Tobin’s first season as coach, the Cardinals seemed to be in good shape as a 0-9 Jets squad came to town. Then the game happened. The Cardinals missed a chance to take an early lead when Greg Davis missed a 28-yard field goal in the first quarter, and from there the team’s offense stalled as the Jets jumped out to a 17-0 halftime lead, with the final seven points coming in the last minute of the second quarter. Davis missed another field goal on Arizona’s first drive of the second half, but the Cardinals rebounded to score 14 third-quarter points to climb within three. The Jets got an Adrian Murrell touchdown to start the fourth quarter and extend the lead, but a 92-yard kickoff return from Leeland McElroy followed and set the the Cardinals up for a six-yard TD strike from Kent Graham to Rob Moore. The teams then traded punts, and a two-yard Reggie Cobb touchdown put the Jets up 31-21 with less than five minutes remaining, and that would be the final score. It would prove to be New York’s only win that season.

1999 – Jets 12, Cardinals 7

A playoff team the year before, the Cardinals had high expectations coming into the season. They got off to a rocky start, though, and took a 2-5 record into New York when they faced a 1-6 Jets team. An Adrian Murrell (he was with the Cardinals now) fumble ended Arizona’s first drive in Jets territory, and after the teams traded punts the Jets got a 44-yard field goal from John Hall to take a first-quarter lead. The Cardinals stayed in the game when Ronald McKinnon and Kwamie Lassiter combined to stop Curtis Martin on a fourth and one from the Arizona five, and took the lead a couple series later after a missed Hall field goal was followed up by a four-yard TD run from Michael Pittman, one that was setup by a 71-yard pass from Dave Brown to Rob Moore. The Cardinals took a 7-6 lead into halftime, though lost their advantage when Hall made a 33-yard field goal with nine minutes left in the third quarter. The Cardinals would reach Jets territory just one time after that, and a 43-yard touchdown pass from Rick Mirer to Keyshawn Johnson with 6:44 remaining and subsequent failed two-point conversion attempt put the Jets on top 12-7, which would be the final score.

2004 – Jets 13, Cardinals 3

At 4-6, the Cardinals were a bubble team when they hosted a 7-3 Jets team that was eyeing a playoff berth. The game between them was a defensive struggle. The Jets took an early lead on a 28-yard Doug Brien field goal in the second quarter, but the Cardinals answered with a 20-yard Neil Rackers boot as the first half expired to tie things at 3-3. The Jets would add another three points on a 46-yard Brien field goal with just less than five minutes remaining in the third quarter, and after the Cardinals punted on their next drive, Quincy Carter found Santana Moss for a 69-yard touchdown that gave the Jets a 13-3 lead they would not relinquish. The teams combined for just 33 first downs in the game, and the Cardinals’ 174 passing yards were just five fewer than the Jets totaled. The Cardinals also turned the ball over four times in the loss.

2008 – Jets 56, Cardinals 35

The 2-1 Cardinals visited the 1-2 Jets in a battle of veteran QBs, with Arizona’s Kurt Warner looking to outduel New York’s Brett Favre. With help of three Favre touchdown passes to Laveranues Coles, a pair of Jay Feely field goals and a Darrelle Revis pick-six, the Jets jumped out to a 34-0 halftime lead. The Cardinals dominated the third quarter, however, notching 21 points on a pair of Edgerrin James touchdown runs and one score from Tim Hightower. However, the Jets regained momentum early in the fourth quarter when Favre connected with Jerricho Cotchery for a 17-yard score, and from there the teams traded touchdown passes, with Warner finding Anquan Boldin, Favre hitting Cotchery again and then Warner tossing a strike to Jerheme Urban. That last score made it 48-35, but the Cardinals would get no closer and even fell behind further when Favre hit tight end Dustin Keller for a touchdown with 1:54 remaining. Besides the ridiculous number of points put up and the many fantasy football games this matchup probably won, this game will be remembered for the vicious hit Boldin received from Jets safety Eric Smith in the final minute.

2012 – Jets 7, Cardinals 6

The Cardinals surprised many when they started the season with a 4-0 record, but were losers of seven straight when they went to the Big Apple to face a 4-7 Jets team. With rookie Ryan Lindley at the helm, things were far from pretty for the Cardinals, though the Jets weren’t much better. The Cardinals picked up just five first downs as Lindley completed 10-of-31 passes for 71 yards. Arizona gained 137 total yards of offense as the Cardinals mustered just a 48-yard Jay Feely (now with the Cardinals) field goal in the second quarter before Greg McElroy threw a one-yard touchdown pass to Jeff Cumberland, which gave the Jets a 7-3 lead early in the fourth quarter. The Cardinals answered with a 35-yard Feely boot in the fourth quarter, and that final kick was followed by the defense forcing a three-and-out. However, the Cardinals gained just two yards on their next drive and punted away with about eight minutes remaining. They never saw the ball again, as the Jets went on a monster 15-play drive that allowed them to run out the clock and escape with the win, but the clock did not run out before there was an incident between Cardinals teammates Darnell Dockett and Kerry Rhodes.

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