Why Lack of Attention Is Good For Arizona Cardinals

The Arizona Cardinals have been anything but quiet this offseason. 

They’ve put together a roster that far exceeds what they were trotting out onto the field in the past two seasons, and are poised to make a massive jump into a contention window.

While many outlets have praised the approach of GM Monti Ossenfort and have given high marks to the Cardinals offseason, both in free agency and the draft, there’s still a bit of a hedge that exists in the national media with regard to the Cardinals’ ceiling in 2025.

Why Lack of Attention is Good for Arizona Cardinals

Analysis surrounding the Cardinals' improvement has generally come in the form of vague, regurgitated takes about how the Cardinals “should” be improved or “may” surpass expectations.

But while many do think it’s a possibility Arizona makes the postseason, there’s very little hype surrounding this team as far as concrete expectations are concerned.

Part of this is simply the fate of a team in a smaller market, but the lack of national attention may actually be a bit of an advantage to Jonathan Gannon’s squad.

When you’re expected to contend, the target on your back grows larger. The Cardinals have been essentially written off for the past three seasons, and despite a poor win total in 2023, Arizona generally surprised with what they were able to accomplish considering their lack of talent.

If those expectations remain vague enough to keep the target off their back, the Cardinals may be able to surprise again in 2025 — this time with a playoff appearance.

The 2025 season will come down more to execution and scheme then it will talent, but when there is pressure, execution can sometimes become a sticking point by itself. 

There’s little concern that Gannon and his coaching staff would allow that type of complacency to take hold but when expectations are heavy, it’s often hard to live up to them.

The Cardinals have the benefit of still being relatively ignored, while quietly building up one of the more talented rosters in the NFC.

Young, rising players have begun to impress, and if it’s all put together into a cohesive group, the Cardinals may shatter those expectations and emerge as one of the NFL’s more respectable squads.

There’s still a lot of uncertainty, and plenty that could go wrong. But for now, it might be most beneficial to ride the wave of relative irrelevance.

Arizona Cardinals Latest News