| 2021 Arizona Cardinals season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Michael Bidwill |
| President | Michael Bidwill |
| Head Coach | Kliff Kingsbury |
| General Manager | Steve Keim |
| Home Field | State Farm Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 11-6 |
| Place | 2nd NFC West |
| Playoff Finish | Lost Wild Card Playoffs (at Rams) 11–34 |
| Pro Bowlers | QB Kyler Murray RB James Conner OLB Chandler Jones SS Budda Baker OT D. J. Humphries (alternate) |
| AP All-Pros | SS Budda Baker (2nd team) |
| Uniform | |
 | |
| Timeline | |
| Previous Season | Next Season |
| 2020 | 2022 |
The 2021 season was the Arizona Cardinals' 102nd season in the National Football League, their 34th in Arizona and their third under head coach Kliff Kingsbury.
They improved from their 8–8 season from the previous year with a 23–13 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in Week 11. The Cardinals started 7–0 for the first time in 47 years when they were based in St. Louis. With their week 11 win over their division rivals, the Seattle Seahawks, the Cardinals improved on their record from the previous year and clinched their first winning season since 2015. Despite a loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 16, the Cardinals clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2015 after the Minnesota Vikings lost to the Los Angeles Rams. However, despite the impressive start and acquiring All-Pros J. J. Watt and A. J. Green prior to the season starting, the team suffered their second consecutive late-season collapse, only winning four out of their last ten games and dropping to the fifth seed.
In the Wild Card playoffs, the Cardinals fell to the rival Los Angeles Rams on their way to winning Super Bowl LVI.
For the first time since 2010, cornerback Patrick Peterson wasn't on the roster, as he signed with the Minnesota Vikings on March 18 via free agency[1], and wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald chose not to sign with any team after 17 years with the franchise.
Roster changes[]
| Position | Player | Tag | 2021 team | Contract |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TE | Dan Arnold | UFA | Carolina Panthers | 2–year |
| S | Chris Banjo | UFA | Arizona Cardinals | 1-year |
| OT | Kelvin Beachum | UFA | Arizona Cardinals | 2–year |
| DE | Angelo Blackson | UFA | Chicago Bears | 2–year |
| LB | De'Vondre Campbell | UFA | Green Bay Packers | TBD |
| TE | Darrell Daniels | UFA | Arizona Cardinals | 1-year |
| TE | Seth DeValve | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| RB | Kenyan Drake | UFA | Las Vegas Raiders | 2–year |
| LB | Kylie Fitts | ERFA | Arizona Cardinals | 1-year |
| WR | Larry Fitzgerald | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| RB | D. J. Foster | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| OG | Max Garcia | UFA | Arizona Cardinals | 1-year |
| LB | Dennis Gardeck | RFA | Arizona Cardinals | 1-year |
| LB | Markus Golden | UFA | Arizona Cardinals | 2–year |
| QB | Brett Hundley | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| LB | Isaiah Irving | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| CB | Johnathan Joseph | UFA | Retired | N/A |
| CB | Dre Kirkpatrick | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| P | Andy Lee | UFA | Arizona Cardinals | 1-year |
| K | Mike Nugent | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| DT | Domata Peko | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| DT | Corey Peters | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| CB | Patrick Peterson | UFA | Minnesota Vikings | 1–year |
| CB | Kevin Peterson | UFA | Tennessee Titans | TBD |
| LB | Haason Reddick | UFA | Carolina Panthers | 1–year |
| WR | Trent Sherfield | UFA | San Francisco 49ers | 1–year |
| OG | J.R. Sweezy | UFA | TBD | TBD |
| LB | Ezekiel Turner | RFA | Arizona Cardinals | 1-year |
| LB | Tanner Vallejo | UFA | Arizona Cardinals | 2–year |
| S | Charles Washington | UFA | Arizona Cardinals | 1-year |
| Player re-signed by the Cardinals | Player not re-signed by the Cardinals |
Signings[]
| Position | Player | Tag | 2020 team | Date signed | Contract |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | A.J. Green | UFA | Cincinnati Bengals | March 17 | 1–year, $8.5 million |
| K | Matt Prater | UFA | Detroit Lions | March 17 | 2–year, $6.5 million |
| DE | J. J. Watt | UFA | Houston Texans | March 17 | 2–year, $28 million |
| OG | Brian Winters | UFA | Buffalo Bills | March 22 | 1–year, $1 million |
| CB | Malcolm Butler | UFA | Tennessee Titans | March 25 | 1–year, $6 million |
| S | Shawn Williams | UFA | Cincinnati Bengals | March 29 | 1–year |
| QB | Colt McCoy | UFA | New York Giants | March 30 | 1–year |
Trades[]
- March 17: The Cardinals traded a third–round pick in 2021 NFL Draft to the Las Vegas Raiders for C Rodney Hudson.[2]
- March 25: The Cardinals traded C Mason Cole to the Minnesota Vikings for a sixth–round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.[3]
Draft[]
- Main article: 2021 NFL Draft
| Round | Selection | Player | Position | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 | |||
| 2 | 49 | |||
| 5 | 160 | |||
| 7 | 243 | |||
| 247 |
Staff[]
Arizona Cardinals current staff
| ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Front Office
Head Coaches
Offensive Coaches
|
Defensive Coaches
Special Teams Coaches
Strength and Conditioning
| |||||
Current roster[]
Italic
Arizona Cardinals current roster
| |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
|
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
|
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
|
Reserve lists
Restricted FAs
Rookies in italics
Roster updated April 24, 2023
| ||||||
Preseason[]
The Cardinals' preseason opponents and schedule will be announced in the spring.
Regular season[]
2021 opponents[]
Listed below are the Cardinals' opponents for 2021. The length of the season is contingent on whether the league and the National Football League Players Association agree to expand the regular season from 16 to 17 games. If this happens, the Cardinals would face the Cleveland Browns based on their division placement from 2020.[4]
Exact dates and times will be announced in the spring.
| Category | Home | Away |
|---|---|---|
| Division opponents (NFC West) |
Los Angeles Rams San Francisco 49ers Seattle Seahawks | |
| Conference opponents (NFC North) |
Green Bay Packers Minnesota Vikings |
Chicago Bears Detroit Lions |
| Conference opponents (based on 2020 division placement) |
Carolina Panthers | Dallas Cowboys |
| Interconference opponents (AFC South) |
Houston Texans Indianapolis Colts |
Jacksonville Jaguars Tennessee Titans |
| Additional away game (Interconference opponent based on 2020 division placement) |
Cleveland Browns | |
References[]
- ↑ Peters, Craig (March 22, 2021). Vikings Altered Plans on the Fly to Land Patrick Peterson.
- ↑ Urban, Darren (March 17, 2021). Cardinals Make Trade For 3-Time Pro Bowl Center Rodney Hudson.
- ↑ Vikings Acquire OL Mason Cole in Trade with Cardinals. www.vikings.com (March 25, 2021).
- ↑ Florio, Mike (February 16, 2020). 17th game will give each team a fifth interconference matchup. Profootballtalk.com.