GLENDALE, Ariz. — The end of the line has arrived for the 2023-24 Arizona Cardinals, as they wrapped up their season with a 21-20 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on Sunday.
Seattle (9-8) came into the game knowing they needed a win and a loss or tie by the Green Bay Packers to make the playoffs and showed the urgency necessary to make it to football's postseason by scoring on three of their first four drives of the game.
The Seahawks opened the scoring on Sunday about 10 minutes into the first quarter on a 33-yard field goal by Jason Myers. Seattle would take the 3-0 lead into the second quarter.
Arizona (4-13) then drove all the way down to the Seattle two-yard line, but the offense was unable to find the endzone. Instead, the Cardinals tied the game on a 23-yard field goal from kicker Matt Prater, which was the 400th field goal of his career.
Seattle responded with their first touchdown drive of the afternoon, a seven-play drive that covered 75 yards in 4:02 and ended with a 19-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Geno Smith to tight end Will Dissly.
Arizona then drove down into the red zone once again, but as on their previous drive, were unable to find the endzone and settled for a 34-yard field goal by Prater to make the score 10-6.
Seattle expanded their lead to 13-6 as time expired in the first half on a 29-yard field goal by Myers. That was Myers' 35th field goal of the season, which is a franchise record.
When the teams came out for the second half, Arizona looked like a team inspired to keep their division rival out of the playoffs.
The Cardinals forced Seattle into a three-and-out to start the half and then the offense showed just how explosive it can be.
On the ensuing drive, Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray found James Conner on a screen pass that ended up as a 34-yard gain after Conner juked a Seattle defender. Murray then found tight end Elijah Higgins on a 25-yard pass, and then Conner capped the drive with a 29-yard touchdown run. Prater hit the extra point to tie the game at 13.
That would be the score heading into the fourth quarter and Arizona would take their first lead of the game thanks to some tricky play calling.
After their first drive of the first quarter stalled in the red zone, the Cardinals called a fake field goal, which resulted in an eight-yard touchdown pass from Murray to tight end Trey McBride to give Arizona a 20-13 lead.
There was a scary moment later in the fourth quarter for Cardinals fans when Murray was slow to get up after getting hit by Seattle linebacker Devin Bush after sliding at the end of a run. Murray's leg appeared to get caught under him. But, Murray came back in after missing only one play.
Arizona's drive would stall and Matt Prater missed a 43-yard field goal try, giving Seattle the opportunity to take the lead, which they took advantage of as Smith found wide receiver Tyler Lockett with a picture-perfect over-the-shoulder pass for a 34-yard touchdown. The pair would connect again on the two-point conversion to give Seattle a 21-20 lead.
Arizona head coach Jonathan Gannon told FOX sideline reporter Pam Oliver before the start of the second half that the Cardinals wouldn't go down without a fight. That proved to be the case as the Cardinals drove down the field with less than two minutes to go and set up Prater for a potential game-winning 51-yard field goal with just one second on the clock.
However, Prater missed his second field goal in a row wide right, and the Cardinals lost, 21-20.
The Cardinals finish the season 4-13 and finished last in the NFC West. The Green Bay Packers beat the Chicago Bears on Sunday, meaning Seattle will miss the playoffs.
Takeaways
The Cardinals that closed out the season on Sunday looked much better than the team that opened the season back in September. It was clear this was never destined to be a great season for the Cardinals, and a top-5 draft pick and last-place finish in the NFC West proved that to be true. However, this team has improved greatly over the course of the season, with the highlight coming in the run game. James Conner closed out the best season of his career by passing 1,000 rushing yards on Sunday and he was also the best player on the field for Arizona.
This team definitely has room to grow heading into the 2024-25 season but showed they can compete with the best teams in the league as two of their wins came over the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys, who will both be in the playoffs. GM Monti Ossenfort will have another busy offseason as he continues to rebuild the Cardinals into contenders, but the future is bright heading into year two with head coach Jonathan Gannon.
Up Next
The Cardinals will have the fourth pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, which will be held April 25-27 in Detroit.
Arizona sports
The city of Phoenix is home to five major professional sports league teams; The NFL's Arizona Cardinals, NBA's Phoenix Suns, WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, MLB's Arizona Diamondbacks and NHL's Arizona Coyotes.
The Cardinals have made State Farm Stadium in Glendale their home turf and the Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix is home to both the Suns and the Mercury. The Indoor Football League’s Arizona Rattlers play at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale. The Coyotes play at Mullett Arena on ASU's Tempe campus.
Phoenix also has a soccer team with the USL's Phoenix Rising FC, who play at Phoenix Rising FC Stadium in Phoenix.
The Valley hosts multiple major sporting events on a yearly basis, including college football's Fiesta Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl; the PGA Tour’s highest-attended event, the WM Phoenix Open; NASCAR events each spring and fall, including Championship Weekend in November; and Cactus League Spring Training for 15 Major League Baseball franchises.
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