Cardinals 4th Quarter Struggles Remains Greatest Mystery

The Arizona Cardinals have been in close games all season, though their 2-4 record is telling of a few things.

The Cardinals, perhaps more than anything else, have not been able to seal the deal when it matters - most notably on the defensive side of the ball.

Entering their Week 6 battle against the Indianapolis Colts, the Cardinals established an NFL record of three consecutive games that ended in a loss thanks to a score on the final play of regulation.

Arizona had gotten last-second stops against inferior opponents in Weeks 1 & 2, though their luck quickly ran out against more quality opponents as the schedule has ramped up.

That again was the case on Sunday, where Arizona's defense allowed the Colts to score touchdowns on their final two possessions before Indianapolis ran the clock out for their 31-27 win.

What's going on with the Cardinals' defense in the fourth quarter?

“This one kicked out a little bit different," said head coach Jonathan Gannon when asked directly about the late struggles.

"The couple games in the past here were more like two-minute mechanics as I would say it. This one was kind of straight up mixed downs. the one drive, I don't think we even got it to third down, or maybe there was one third down. The last touchdown they put on the board, we have to do a better job there.

"We looked at it today and (asked ourselves), ‘Are we putting them in the right spots and what do we need to do?’ We're all trying to find solutions together because you have to keep points off the board there. I honestly think we took a step back in the run game fundamentals collectively.

"That’s been up to par in my mind up until this last one. (I) give them credit, they have a good ‘O-line’ (offensive line), a really good back and a good scheme, but we have to play better than that. There's no doubt.”

Like I highlighted on X, the Cardinals have prevented scores on just five of 16 fourth quarter drives since Week 2. They've allowed scores with under five minutes left to play in every week thus far while losing their last four games by a combined nine points.

“Put it all together, we better or we're not going to win. (We) have to put it all together, all three phases, 60 minutes, run (and) pass game, red zone, backed up, two-minute, four-minute, short yardage—all the things that go into the game," Gannon continued on playing complementary football.

"I know it's funny because I smirked too, but you really don't know where it's going to matriculate for a game and that's why you have to be on the details of everything. That’s the ball, you never know when that's going to show up. I thought we did a good job hunting it. The one (where) we took the ball away then when we gave it back, unfortunate. Kind of a bad luck play—whatever.

"We looked at that (and said) ‘How can we avoid that one?’ It all matters, it all counts, and you have to do it well.”

The Cardinals' blitz rate of 20.4% ranks 22nd in the NFL through six weeks of play according to Pro Football Reference.

Arizona also ranks near the bottom of the league in sacks (23rd with 11) and quarterback pressure percentage (16.1%, 27th).

In total, their yards allowed per game at 348 ranks 24th, which is slightly worse than 2024's defense despite having an upgraded unit.

The Cardinals' defense isn't bad - and it's nowhere close to being awful, though their inability to close out games has truly been one of the greater mysteries of 2025.

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