The easiest path for any team in the National Football League to make the playoffs is to win their own division and receive the automatic berth for that accomplishment. Unfortunately, this is not something the Arizona Cardinals have been able to do since 2015, and only three times in total this century.
The Cardinals in their third year under head coach Jonathan Gannon are expected to continue on their developmental path that saw them improve from 4-13 in his first year to 8-9 last season, and at one point in the year, sniffing the playoffs.
This means that expectations for the 2025 version of the Cardinals should rightfully include their first playoff appearance since a disastrous Wildcard loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the 2021 season.
Although it can be really be said for any team, the path for the Cardinals to achieve this milestone lies in their division, the NFC West.
It has been a historically tough division for several years now, but there are indications that this season could represent an opportunity for an improving Cardinals squad to reclaim a title they have not earned in a decade, NFC West champion.
The San Francisco 49ers' defense has been near the top in the league for several years thanks to the efforts of general manager John Lynch who has consistently put together top squads even though the team did not truly figure out their franchise quarterback situation until getting lucky with Brock Purdy a couple of seasons ago.
This offseason, however, San Francisco took a long, hard look at their roster and moved on from an astounding 17 players including mainstays Javon Hargrave, Dre Greenlaw, Talanoa Hufanga, and Charvarius Ward.
Offensively, the 49ers lost Deebo Samuel to the Washington Commanders but have retained a core that they have found success with in the past with Purdy, Brandon Aiyuk, and Christian McCaffrey (when healthy) leading the way.
By no stretch of the imagination are the 49ers dead, they are still an incredibly well-coached team and brought back defensive coordinator Robert Saleh with whom they had their most success including a Super Bowl run in 2019.
Still, they are more vulnerable than they have been in quite a long time. They were the only team in the division the Cardinals were able to sweep last season and if they can do so again in 2025 it will help them tremendously in the hunt for the division.
The blockbuster trade in 2021 that swapped Jared Goff for Detroit's Matthew Stafford ended up being one of the best moves in franchise history for the Rams. Since that trade they have won the division twice and, more importantly, Super Bowl LVI in 2022.
Now, going into 2025 the Rams might have a quarterback problem on their hands. Stafford has been dealing with back problems this offseason that supposedly center around a potential herniated disc.
There are levels to the severity of injuries commonly seen in the NFL, and in general, back injuries are not ones that have great outcomes. Once a back is injured, the risk of re-injury is higher than most others and the risk to the player's future and quality of life is high.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who has not practiced during training camp because of an aggravated disk in his back, will work out Saturday morning, coach Sean McVay said.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 15, 2025
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The options behind Stafford on the depth chart represent a fairly steep drop-off from the quality of play expected from the 37-year old, future Hall of Famer. That being said, the Cardinals have had their share of troubles with Jimmy Garoppolo in the not-so-distant past during his stint with the 49ers.
Beyond the quarterback question and if Stafford is indeed able to play at his former level, the Rams were shaping up to be a great football team yet again in 2025.
They have invested heavily in young defensive talent since losing Aaron Donald and the investment has paid off with emerging stars like Braden Fiske and Jared Verse.
Offensively, they lost Cooper Kupp this offseason but added another likely future Hall of Famer in Davante Adams in hopes that he would quickly build a connection with Stafford that would be tough to stop by opposing defenses.
McVay-coached teams find ways to get even hotter as the season goes along, which makes it doubly unfortunate that the Cardinals will not meet them for the first time until Week 14 and will then end the season with the Rams in Week 18.
If the Cardinals want to win the NFC West this year, they have to find a way to not fall off at the tail-end when they meet with the team that might be their greatest obstacle to a division title.
After a fairly chaotic offseason, the Seattle Seahawks are one of the great unknowns of the division. They historically find a way to be good, even if not great, and when talking directly about the Cardinals they have historically found ways to win. In fact, they have swept the Cardinals the past three season and hold an 8-2 advantage since 2020.
Still, there are more unknowns about this version of the Seahawks than in previous years.
Head coach Mike Macdonald fired his offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb and replaced him with Klint Kubiak. The team traded away 27-year old star receiver D.K. Metcalf to the Steelers and replaced him with 32-year old Cooper Kupp. They made a change at the most important position in the game, letting Geno Smith walk on to Las Vegas and replacing him with Sam Darnold.
Darnold comes with several question marks. The early years of his career were marked by bad play in New York and after a run as a backup he put together an impressive resurgence as a starter in Minnesota that earned him a Pro Bowl nod in 2024.
The Vikings were an excellent situation last year with superstar Justin Jefferson to throw to and a decent offensive line protecting him. On paper, the offensive situation in Seattle seems to be a downgrade which could presage a regression back to Darnold's previous level of play.
Seattle went heavy on offensive line in April's draft, spending three picks including their first rounder, trying to solidify that position. Grey Zabel should be a good player, but he can only play one position at a time on an offensive line that was ranked No. 30 ahead of this season by PFF.
Defensively, there are lot of good pieces. Cornerback Devon Witherspoon is consistently good and Riq Woolen flashed as a rookie but regressed some last year.
It remains to be seen whether swapping Smith and Metcalf for Darnold and Kupp was the right move, but the overall success of the Seahawks in 2025 relies on that panning out for them.
With all of that uncertainly, this is possibly the best chance in this decade for the Cardinals to break the cycle and find some success against a team that has historically beat them down.
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