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2020 Arizona Cardinals Schedule: Full Listing of Dates, Times and TV Info
May 7, 2020
The Arizona Cardinals will look to make a leap in 2019 top overall pick Kyler Murray's second year under center and head coach Kliff Kingsbury's second year patrolling the sidelines.
The Cardinals finished last season at 5-10-1, improving slightly on their 3-13 mark from 2018 that landed them the 2019 No. 1 pick. Arizona has not made the playoffs since the 2015 campaign, losing to the Carolina Panthers 49-15 in the NFC Championship Game.
The franchise has undergone several significant changes since then, but 36-year-old All-Pro wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and 29-year-old All-Pro cornerback Patrick Peterson remain.
Below is an overview of the regular-season road the Cardinals will have to maneuver in order to make a surprise run to Super Bowl LV as well as analysis and key matchups along the way.
Cardinals 2020 Schedule
Analysis
Nobody is picking the Cardinals to emerge as a Super Bowl contender, but there is precedent for a sub-.500 squad to make it to the big game the following year. You don't even have to look outside the NFC West.
The San Francisco 49ers went 4-12 in 2018 only to finish the 2019 regular season at 13-3 before losing 31-20 to the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIV. The primary difference for the Niners was quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo returning from a torn ACL and rookie No. 2 overall pick Nick Bosa spearheading a dominant pass rush.
The difference for the Cardinals will be how All-Pro wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins works alongside Fitzgerald to elevate Murray. Arizona sent 28-year-old running back David Johnson plus a 2020 second-round pick and '21 fourth-rounder in exchange for Hopkins and a '20 fourth-rounder.
Hopkins recorded his third straight All-Pro campaign with at least 1,000 yards receiving for the third year in a row. The Cardinals, meanwhile, have not had a 1,000-yard receiver since Fitzgerald did so in 2017.
Mike Jurecki @mikejureckiWR Larry Fitzgerald returning for his 17 season has more career tackles (39) than career drops (29) on 2,263 targets. His case to be regarded as the best hands of our generation. Per @PFF Lowest drop rate % (2015-19) Godwin 2.2 Baldwin 2.6 Brown 2.8 Fitzgerald 2.9 Thomas 3.1 https://t.co/kzLabbZ097
Protecting Murray will be paramount. The 2018 Heisman Trophy winner was sacked an NFL-most 48 times as a rookie. The Cardinals addressed the issue by re-signing interior offensive lineman Max Garcia and extending offensive tackle D.J. Humphries before taking University of Houston offensive tackle Josh Jones in the third round of the 2020 draft.
The Cardinals have also made moves to improve upon their league-worst defense from a year ago by signing the likes of former Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Jordan Phillips as well as former Atlanta Falcons linebacker De'Vondre Campbell and former Detroit Lions linebacker Devon Kennard in free agency.
Arizona further prioritized the defense by spending the No. 8 overall pick on linebacker Isaiah Simmons, who led Clemson with eight sacks, 16.5 tackles for loss and 104 tackles.
On paper, it seems the Cardinals will benefit from a relatively weak schedule outside of the NFC West forcing them to face the Seattle Seahawks and 49ers twice apiece. Arizona's non-divisional opponents had a 66-93-1 combined 2019 record.
Key Matchups
Divisional play will go a long way in gauging where the Cardinals are in terms of truly contending.
The NFC West was the only division to have three of its four teams finish above .500. The 49ers won the division title by defeating Seattle 26-21 in the regular-season finale.
The Cardinals went 1-5 against NFC West opponents with their lone victory coming against the Seahawks in Week 16 behind an exceptional 166-yard, two-touchdown performance from running back Kenyan Drake.
It all starts in the NFC West for the Cards—unlike other rebuilding teams playing in weaker divisions such as the AFC East or NFC East.
That aside, circle Week 4 on your calendar for when Arizona will travel to Carolina and face the new-look Panthers. The Cardinals lost to the Panthers 38-20 in Week 3 in '19 with Kyle Allen as Carolina's starting quarterback. This time around, Teddy Bridgewater will be under center after the team released the 2015 NFL MVP Cam Newton on March 24.
It will also be interesting to see how the Miami Dolphins rookie fifth overall pick Tua Tagovailoa stacks up against Murray when the Dolphins visit Arizona on November 8 for Week 9.