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Cardinals linebacker Cody Simon (50) looks over the Raiders' offensive line during a preseason game at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on Aug. 23, 2025. Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

3 Cardinals Who Must Step Up Against the 49ers

Originally posted on Arizona Cardinals on SI
By Donnie Druin | Last updated Nov 15, 2025 3:59 PM ET

The Arizona Cardinals move into their Week 11 matchup with the San Francisco 49ers desperately needing a win to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.

The Cardinals are down several starters this week while the 49ers seem to be getting healthy at the right time.

As a result, Arizona will face an uphill battle at home - especially after losing their previous meeting in San Francisco earlier this year.

A win is not impossible, but these three players must step up for the Cardinals to find success:

LB Cody Simon

With Mack Wilson out for another week, the Cardinals will rely once again on the rookie Ohio State linebacker to command the defense.

Simon's performance wasn't excellent nor poor in Seattle in his first official NFL start, though against a Kyle Shanahan offense that features eye candy galore, the Cardinals' fourth-round pick has a massive task at hand.

“Offensively they're as good as they come. They have premier players (and) it's a great system. (49ers HC) Kyle (Shanahan) obviously is one of the best out there," head coach Jonathan Gannon said.

"Run game -- you don't know where the ball's going. They hide it (well) so it's hard to get the leverages and the angles that you want. In the pass game, you have to really defend every part of the field which makes it challenging because there are times that you're not going to have a lot of help on certain guys."

Simon has to win the chess match pre-snap, or Arizona could be in for a long day defensively.

WR Michael Wilson

With Marvin Harrison Jr. out, the Cardinals' passing attack takes a major hit.

In order to fully prevent San Francisco from keying on Trey McBride, Michael Wilson has to seamlessly transition into Arizona's top weapon out wide.

The good news? He's extremely capable, as he's made the most of his limited opportunities thus far.

"He's getting open and catching it, and I think he has improved his route running, which there's varying levels to that, but he's done a good job with a couple things that he's been working on with Drew [Terrell, Arizona's WR coach] to improve that part of his game, it's showing up," Gannon said on Wilson.

The big-bodied wideout will be put in the spotlight on Sunday. To keep things humming on offense, he'll need to continue making plays.

DL Darius Robinson

If we did this article weekly, Robinson would be a mainstay.

The Cardinals' first-round pick from a year ago has yet to live up to the billing in his second season, and while Robinson isn't filling up the box score - he's still earning some massive praise from teammates and coaches.

He's questionable entering this week, so he might not even play - though if he does, the Cardinals absolutely need him to get going against a 49ers offense that only needs a little bit of space and time to make magic happen.

Guys such as Calais Campbell, Josh Sweat and even Walter Nolen (also questionable) have held their end of the bargain.

It's time for Robinson to do the same. Sunday would be a great time for his breakout performance to come.