GLENDALE, Ariz. — Being an Arizona Cardinals fan typically entails a season of fleeting joy more often marred by disappointment and occasional bouts of shame.
After losing three games straight, it may seem like the more things change the more they stay the same.
The Cards are about to end a years-long playoff drought despite themselves.
But it's par for the course for this franchise, and one detail may give you hope that the team's first Super Bowl championship is still on the horizon.
The last time the Cards were in the playoffs was in 2015. That year, Carson Palmer with a squad led by Bruce Arians went all the way to the NFC Championship only to fall unceremoniously in a 15-49 blowout to the Carolina Panthers.
That year felt more like the continuation of one of the most iconic underdog stories left unfinished.
February 1, 2009 may have been both the finest moment for the Cardinals and its darkest hour.
A 9-7 Arizona squad stumbled their way into the playoffs after losing four of their last six games in the 2008-09 season.
Few thought a club in the middle of a championship drought harkening back to 1947 could make a deep run, and yet the Cardinals would fire back with a vengeance.
In a vintage year, veteran quarterback Kurt Warner looked as spry as his top weapon, a 25-year-old Larry Fitzgerald, and the team looked poised to shock the world.
A slim 30–24 victory over the Atlanta Falcons, a stunning 33–13 upset of the second-seeded Carolina Panthers, then an epic 32–25 win over the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship.
The sensational run already produced more playoff wins for the franchise than the last 60 years combined, but Warner and Fitzgerald wanted even more.
However, Super Bowl XLIII was a veritable David and Goliath setup.
The Cardinals were severe underdogs against a stout Pittsburgh Steelers club cruising towards a sixth Super Bowl title behind a prime Ben Roethlisberger under center and a fresh-faced Mike Tomlin in his first season as head coach.
Meanwhile, Arizona had never even reached a championship game in the Super Bowl era.
Cardinal fans muttered nervously as the Steelers breezed through three quarters. Arizona trailed 7-20 with just 15 minutes left to play.
Racing against the clock, a crisp corner fade from Warner found Fitzgerald as he outleapt his man for separation, just barely securing the ball by his fingertips. The touchdown trimmed the deficit, but the 87-yard drive cost precious time.
On a brisk and cloudy night in Tampa, a Cardinals defense that struggled all year found its footing just in time to force a safety; they were within striking distance.
And then.
Warner’s eyes caught Fitzgerald blitzing through midfield with two black and gold jerseys desperately scrambling to catch up. With championship dreams on the line, Warner cocked his arm back and fired.
A burst of speed and Fitzgerald effortlessly hauled in the rifled throw in stride, torching Pittsburgh’s secondary as they fell helplessly behind the sensational 64-yard run.
Larry Legend screamed as he crossed the endzone with arms wide to deafening roars from 71,000 people who cheered and jeered the miraculous go-ahead score.
Head coach Ken Whisenhunt and the rest of the Cardinals sideline erupted in celebration as the team’s first lead came after 16 unanswered points with just 157 ticks left on the clock.
Oh, how Arizona wishes the story ended there. But you know the rest.
Roethlisberger threaded the needle through triple coverage to find Santonio Holmes. A toe-tap touchdown in the waning seconds and the dream was over.
27-23 in favor of Pittsburgh.
The finest moment in Cardinals franchise history, and Fitzgerald’s Hall of Fame career, was upstaged in heartbreaking fashion.
Super Bowl XLIII is widely hailed as one of the greatest games of all time, but it remains a painful memory in the Valley.
More than a decade later and Arizona has yet to revel in the sweetness of winning the NFL Championship we were so close to.
Each win under Kliff Kingsbury, each Hail Murray from 2019's top draft pick, brought a glimmer of hope that things could be different.
In his rookie season, Kyler Murray, 24, led the Cards to an underwhelming 5-10-1 record. The team went 8-8 the following year.
It was progress, but no one could have predicted what was coming next.
Fast forward to 2021 and now Arizona is entering the postseason for the first time in six years.
This year has been a turning point for a young squad playing with the brand of vigor and facing unmistakably similar adversity as Warner and Fitzgerald’s phenomenal run.
Are you ready to witness what this team can do?
Welcome to the bandwagon.
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