The Cardinals head into Week 1 with plenty still unknown, and that uncertainty is part of what makes this road trip to face the Los Angeles Chargers so interesting. Arizona is going into the opener as an underdog, and there’s a real chance that role fits this team just fine.
The offense, though, is where the excitement lives. Mike LaFleur’s group has already shown flashes of the kind of high-powered attack the Cardinals believed they were getting in Kliff Kingsbury.
The run game looks overhauled, and the passing concepts feel far more modern than what came before. This should be a fun unit to watch from the jump.
Jeremiyah Love is also trending toward being ready after the high ankle sprain he suffered against the Las Vegas Raiders in preseason play, and the Cardinals appear to expect him to be available for Week 1. Even so, there’s no reason to force it. Tyler Allgeier could easily handle more of the workload early while Love gets eased back in, even if he is back to full strength.
That opener comes with the usual Week 1 chaos, only amplified by the fact that both Los Angeles and Arizona are working with new play-callers. McDaniel and LaFleur come from coaching trees built around creativity, which only adds to the sense that the first Sunday could get weird in a hurry. With fresh schemes and no current-season tape, surprises should be part of the package.
There’s also a real defensive storyline here, and it starts with Rallis. With Jonathan Gannon gone, he’s now the lone man accountable for how the defense performs.
The Cardinals did bring in senior assistant coach Teryl Austin this offseason, giving them a fallback option if Rallis’ group doesn’t hold up. But the bottom line is simple: Arizona needs the defense to improve, and if the early results are shaky, the pressure will rise fast.
That matters even more because this matchup has the look of a shootout. Arizona’s defensive expectations are low, and the Chargers are also dealing with change after former L.A. defensive coordinator Jesse Minter left last season. Put those pieces together and this could wind up being the most entertaining game on the Sunday slate in terms of points.
The last time these teams met was on Monday Night Football at State Farm Stadium in 2024, and it ended with the Cardinals squeezing out a 17-15 win. Kyler Murray threw for just 145 yards, but he added a 44-yard touchdown run, and Chad Ryland won it with a game-winning field goal as time expired.
As for individual production, Trey McBride is still the name to watch. Even with the offense looking capable of spreading the ball around, McBride should remain central to what Arizona does. Another huge statistical eruption may not be waiting, but he’s still positioned to fill up the box score.
On the other side of the ball, Walter Nolen III could make a loud statement. The Chargers are without starting center Tyler Biadasz, and Nolen enters his second season fully healthy.
His upside as an interior pass rusher is real, and he already looks like one of Arizona’s most important defensive players. A two-sack day against Los Angeles is in play.
There are other matchups worth keeping an eye on around the league too, including Green Bay vs. Minnesota, with Jonathan Gannon and Kyler Murray in those roles for that NFC North matchup. And the Rams were mentioned as a team with talent and experience on both sides, with Aaron Donald back and the sense that Los Angeles is in a Super Bowl-or-bust place.
For Arizona, the big-picture view is pretty straightforward. A six-win season would be a reasonable step forward after everything that went wrong in last year’s three-win campaign. With a new head coach, a better offense and a little more health, the Cardinals should be in the win column more often this time around.
In Other News...
Cardinals Suddenly Have A Depth Question Fans Can't Ignore
With the regular-season opener getting closer, the Cardinals spent part of the week taking a long look at six tryout players, a group that included four offensive linemen and two cornerbacks. Austin Deculus, Corey Robinson, Colby Sorsdal, Aamil Wagner, Art Green and Jerrick Reed all got a chance to show what they can offer as Arizona continues sorting through the back end of the roster.
The positions alone tell the story here. Arizona is clearly keeping an eye on depth in the trenches and in the secondary, and any move that follows could end up pointing back to injuries already affecting the roster. Practice squad additions remain a possibility, but for now the Cardinals are still in evaluation mode with a few spots worth watching closely. [Read more 🡒]
Josh Sweat Could Become A Cardinals Pivot Point Fast
The edge-rusher market could get busy before the trade deadline, and Josh Sweat has already surfaced as a name to watch. For Arizona, that alone says plenty about where the veteran pass rusher stands in the bigger picture: he is valuable enough to draw outside attention, even as the Cardinals sort through what kind of season they are really building toward.
Chicago's reported interest adds another layer, especially with the Bears looking for help up front and a conditional 2027 fourth-round pick mentioned as a possible framework. The Cardinals are not believed to be shopping Sweat right now, but that stance could be tested if their competitive outlook shifts, which is why his status feels like a potential pivot point in the coming days. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Are Finally Closing In On A Crucial Jeremiyah Love Test
The Cardinals are finally getting a closer look at Jeremiyah Love after the rookie running back spent time recovering from injury. Head coach Mike LaFleur said Love will be ready to practice on Wednesday, giving Arizona its first real chance to assess how the No. 3 overall pick responds to a live workload and whether he can handle the daily grind without any setbacks.
For a team that already has James Conner and Tyler Allgeier in the backfield mix, the next step is less about rushing Love back and more about easing him into the rotation the right way. Arizona plans to build him up gradually, and this weeks practice stretch should tell the Cardinals plenty about where he stands and how close he is to becoming part of the offense for real. [Read more 🡒]