Cardinals in desperate need of coherent plan amid OTA absences

Ten years ago, my jaw dropped in Times Square. It wasn’t from the sight of the Naked Cowboy strumming his guitar.

It was a massive digital billboard promoting the Arizona Cardinals and an upcoming series on Amazon, “All or Nothing.” It was the summer of 2016, and I swelled with pride. One of the most wretched franchises in sports history had not only crawled out of the basement, capturing the fancy of Valley sports fans. They had made it to the bustling streets of New York City, the media capital of the world.

And if you can make it there …

Ten years later, the buzz has faded. The 2016 All or Nothing Cardinals played in four nationally televised games, a team with real star power and a real shot at glory. The 2026 Cardinals will play zero primetime football, a team given the NFL’s stamp of irrelevance and a slap-in-the-face bye week in mid-December. They will be underdogs in each of their 17 games.

Turnabouts happen very quickly in the NFL. Someone always goes from worst to first. The 2001 Patriots and 2025 Patriots each entered the season with 60-1 odds to win the Super Bowl, only to win and appear in a Super Bowl, respectively.

But the Cardinals are entering Year Four of a rebuild, and their odds of winning a Super Bowl are 250-1. They are out of sight and out of mind, and the sense of hopelessness is crushing. Especially for the core group of fans who openly wept when the Cardinals won the 2008 NFC Championship Game in Glendale; who helped fuel the rise of a moribund franchise, a fan base that had become real and rabid and well-respected across the NFL.

Today, there is no sign of clarity regarding Jacoby Brissett and Josh Sweat, two of the most important returning players. And from the quarterback room to the running backs they’ve accumulated, there is no sense of coherent planning.

The Cardinals badly need to catch a break. They need Jeremiyah Love to be electrifying; they need Josh Sweat to show up happy and on time when the mandatory stuff begins; they need breakout seasons from a handful of recent high-leverage draft picks, the ones sinking Monti Ossenfort’s reputation; or they need Mike LaFleur to be an instant-impact head coach.

Since the Cardinals have money to spend, here’s the smartest plan. Find a number that makes Brissett happy, if only to assure the ascension of wide receiver Michael Wilson. Give Brissett six weeks to prove the 2026 Cardinals might shock the world. And if it looks hopeless after a road game against the Rams on Oct. 18, cut him loose, even if it means swallowing some guaranteed money.

The Cardinals then shift to the Carson Beck show, with Gardner Minshew serving as mentor/faithful backup. And then we all get the answers we need, and whether the Cardinals need to race for the bottom and secure a premium pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.

It may not be fun or easy on the eyes. But at least it’s a plan.

Reach Bickley at dbickley@arizonasports.com. Listen to Bickley & Marotta weekdays from 6 a.m. – 10 a.m. on 98.7 and the Arizona Sports app.

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