2014 Arizona Cardinals season

NFL team season

The 2014 season was the Arizona Cardinals' 95th in the National Football League (NFL), their 27th in Arizona and their second under head coach Bruce Arians. Following an explosive 9–1 start to the regular season, they finished at 11–5, achieving their highest win total since 1975 when they were still in St. Louis (also their highest total in a 16-game season). The Cardinals clinched their first playoff berth since 2009, and had a chance to become the first team to try to play the Super Bowl on their own home field, University of Phoenix Stadium. However, after season-ending injuries to Carson Palmer and Drew Stanton, they were forced to start third-string quarterback Ryan Lindley in the wild-card round, losing to the Carolina Panthers, 27–16.

Draft

2014 Arizona Cardinals draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 27 Deone Bucannon  S Washington St Pick from NO
2 52 Troy Niklas  TE Notre Dame
3 84 Kareem Martin  DE North Carolina
3 91 John Brown  WR Pittsburg St Pick from NO
4 120 Logan Thomas  QB Virginia Tech
5 160 Ed Stinson  DE Alabama
6 196 Walt Powell  WR Murray St
      Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career
  • Note: The Cardinals traded their original first-round selection (No. 20 overall) to the New Orleans Saints in exchange for the Saints' first- (No. 27 overall) and third- (No. 91 overall) round selections.

Staff

2014 Arizona Cardinals staff

Front office

  • Owner/chairman – Bill Bidwill
  • President – Michael Bidwill
  • general manager – Steve Keim
  • Vice president of player personnel – Terry McDonough
  • Director of college scouting – Dru Grigson
  • Director of pro scouting – Quentin Harris

Head coaches

  • Head coach – Bruce Arians
  • Assistant head coach/offense – Tom Moore

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and conditioning – Buddy Morris
  • Assistant strength and conditioning – Pete Alosi
  • Assistant strength and conditioning – Roger Kingdom

Final roster

2014 Arizona Cardinals final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad


Rookies in italics
 53 active, 10 inactive, 10 practice squad

Preseason

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
1 August 9 Houston Texans W 32–0 1–0 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
2 August 16 at Minnesota Vikings L 28–30 1–1 TCF Bank Stadium Recap
3 August 24 Cincinnati Bengals L 13–19 1–2 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
4 August 28 at San Diego Chargers L 9–12 1–3 Qualcomm Stadium Recap

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap
1 September 8 San Diego Chargers W 18–17 1–0 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
2 September 14 at New York Giants W 25–14 2–0 MetLife Stadium Recap
3 September 21 San Francisco 49ers W 23–14 3–0 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
4 Bye
5 October 5 at Denver Broncos L 20–41 3–1 Sports Authority Field at Mile High Recap
6 October 12 Washington Redskins W 30–20 4–1 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
7 October 19 at Oakland Raiders W 24–13 5–1 O.co Coliseum Recap
8 October 26 Philadelphia Eagles W 24–20 6–1 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
9 November 2 at Dallas Cowboys W 28–17 7–1 AT&T Stadium Recap
10 November 9 St. Louis Rams W 31–14 8–1 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
11 November 16 Detroit Lions W 14–6 9–1 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
12 November 23 at Seattle Seahawks L 3–19 9–2 CenturyLink Field Recap
13 November 30 at Atlanta Falcons L 18–29 9–3 Georgia Dome Recap
14 December 7 Kansas City Chiefs W 17–14 10–3 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
15 December 11 at St. Louis Rams W 12–6 11–3 Edward Jones Dome Recap
16 December 21 Seattle Seahawks L 6–35 11–4 University of Phoenix Stadium Recap
17 December 28 at San Francisco 49ers L 17–20 11–5 Levi's Stadium Recap

Game summaries

Regular season

Week 1: vs. San Diego Chargers

Week One: San Diego Chargers at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 0 3 14017
Cardinals 0 6 01218

at University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
  • SD – Ryan Matthews - 12 Car, 40 Yds, 1 TD
  • ARI – Andre Ellington - 13 Car, 53 Yds
Top receivers
Top tacklers

Week 2: at New York Giants

Week Two: Arizona Cardinals at New York Giants – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 10 0 01525
Giants 0 7 7014

at MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

  • Date: September 14
  • Game time: 1:00 pm. EDT/10:00 a.m.
  • Game weather: 66 °F (19 °C), sunny
  • Game attendance: 78,344
  • Referee: John Parry
  • TV announcers (Fox): Kevin Burkhardt, John Lynch and Pam Oliver
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Top tacklers

Week 3: vs. San Francisco 49ers

Week Three: San Francisco 49ers at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
49ers 7 7 0014
Cardinals 3 3 14323

at University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Top tacklers

Week 5: at Denver Broncos

Week Five: Arizona Cardinals at Denver Broncos – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 6 7 7020
Broncos 7 14 31741

at Sports Authority Field at Mile High, Denver, Colorado

  • Date: October 5
  • Game time: 2:05 pm. MDT/1:05 p.m.
  • Game weather: 71 °F (22 °C), sunny
  • Game attendance: 76,895
  • Referee: Bill Leavy
  • TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Erin Andrews
  • Recap, Game book
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
Top tacklers

Week 6: vs. Washington Redskins

Week Six: Washington Redskins at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Redskins 0 13 0720
Cardinals 7 7 31330

at University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
  • WAS – Alfred Morris, 13 Car, 41 Yds
  • ARI – Andre Ellington, 19 Car, 67 Yds
Top receivers
Top tacklers

Week 7: at Oakland Raiders

Week Seven: Arizona Cardinals at Oakland Raiders – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 7 7 7324
Raiders 0 10 3013

at O.co Coliseum, Oakland, California

  • Date: October 19
  • Game time: 1:25 p.m.
  • Game weather: 69 °F (21 °C), sunny
  • Game attendance: 52,101
  • Referee: Clete Blakeman
  • TV announcers (Fox): Dick Stockton, Brady Quinn and Kristina Pink
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
  • ARI –
  • OAK –
Top rushers
  • ARI –
  • OAK –
Top receivers
  • ARI –
  • OAK –
Top tacklers
  • ARI –
  • OAK –

Week 8: vs. Philadelphia Eagles

Week Eight: Philadelphia Eagles at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Eagles 7 0 10320
Cardinals 0 7 71024

at University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

  • Date: October 26
  • Game time: 1:05 p.m.
  • Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
  • Game attendance: 61,789
  • Referee: Walt Anderson
  • TV announcers (Fox): Chris Myers, Ronde Barber and Jennifer Hale
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
  • PHI –
  • ARI –
Top rushers
  • PHI –
  • ARI –
Top receivers
  • PHI –
  • ARI –
Top tacklers
  • PHI –
  • ARI –

Week 9: at Dallas Cowboys

Week Nine: Arizona Cardinals at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 0 14 01428
Cowboys 10 0 0717

at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas

  • Date: November 2
  • Game time: 12:00 pm. CST/11:00 a.m. MST
  • Game weather: 57 °F (14 °C), cloudy (retractable roof open)
  • Game attendance: 85,688
  • Referee: Craig Wrolstad
  • TV announcers (Fox): Joe Buck, Troy Aikman and Erin Andrews
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
  • No scoring plays
Fourth quarter
Top passers
  • ARI –
  • DAL –
Top rushers
  • ARI –
  • DAL –
Top receivers
  • ARI –
  • DAL –
Top tacklers
  • ARI –
  • DAL –

Week 10: vs. St. Louis Rams

Week Ten: St. Louis Rams at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Rams 7 7 0014
Cardinals 0 10 02131

at University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

  • Date: November 9
  • Game time: 2:25 pm. MST
  • Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
  • Game attendance: 61,363
  • Referee: Ron Torbert
  • TV announcers (Fox): Chris Myers, Ronde Barber, Matt Hasselbeck and Jennifer Hale
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
  • No scoring plays
Fourth quarter
Top passers
  • STL –
  • ARI –
Top rushers
  • STL –
  • ARI –
Top receivers
  • STL –
  • ARI –
Top tacklers
  • STL –
  • ARI –

Carson Palmer would suffer a season-ending injury on his left-knee. Drew Stanton would take over as quarterback for the rest of the game. Thanks to the efforts of the defense during the fourth quarter, the Cardinals rallied to beat the Rams 31-14.[1]

Week 11: vs. Detroit Lions

Week Eleven: Detroit Lions at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Lions 3 3 006
Cardinals 14 0 0014

at University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

  • Date: November 16
  • Game time: 2:25 pm. MST
  • Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
  • Game attendance: 62,487
  • Referee: Jerome Boger
  • TV announcers (Fox): Chris Myers, Ronde Barber and Jennifer Hale
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
  • No scoring plays
Fourth quarter
  • No scoring plays
Top passers
  • DET –
  • ARI –
Top rushers
  • DET –
  • ARI –
Top receivers
  • DET –
  • ARI –
Top tacklers
  • DET –
  • ARI –

Week 12: at Seattle Seahawks

Week Twelve: Arizona Cardinals at Seattle Seahawks – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 0 3 003
Seahawks 3 6 10019

at CenturyLink Field, Seattle, Washington

  • Date: November 23
  • Game time: 2:05 pm. MST/1:05 pm. PST
  • Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C), sunny
  • Game attendance: 68,327
  • Referee: Gene Steratore
  • TV announcers (Fox): Kevin Burkhardt, John Lynch and Pam Oliver
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
  • No scoring plays
Top passers
  • ARI –
  • SEA –
Top rushers
  • ARI –
  • SEA –
Top receivers
  • ARI –
  • SEA –
Top tacklers
  • ARI –
  • SEA –

Week 13: at Atlanta Falcons

Week Thirteen: Arizona Cardinals at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 0 10 0818
Falcons 17 3 3629

at Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia

  • Date: November 30
  • Game time: 4:05 pm. EST/2:05 pm. MST
  • Game weather: Played indoors (dome stadium)
  • Game attendance: 69,557
  • Referee: Terry McAulay
  • TV announcers (Fox): Kevin Burkhardt, John Lynch and Pam Oliver
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
  • ARI –
  • ATL –
Top rushers
  • ARI –
  • ATL –
Top receivers
  • ARI –
  • ATL –
Top tacklers
  • ARI –
  • ATL –

Week 14: vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Week Fourteen: Kansas City Chiefs at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 7 7 0014
Cardinals 3 3 11017

at University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

  • Date: December 7
  • Game time: 2:05 pm. MST
  • Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
  • Game attendance: 62,387
  • Referee: Craig Wrolstad
  • TV announcers (CBS): Greg Gumbel, Trent Green and Evan Washburn
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information

First quarter

Second quarter

  • ARI – Chandler Catanzaro 33-yard field goal, 7:48. Chiefs 7–6. Drive: 16 plays, 65 yards, 8:07.
  • KC – Jamaal Charles 18-yard pass from Alex Smith (Cairo Santos kick), 1:19. Chiefs 14–6. Drive: 11 plays, 66 yards, 6:31.

Third quarter

  • ARI – Chandler Catanzaro 39-yard field goal, 9:07. Chiefs 14–9. Drive: 6 plays, 40 yards, 1:16.
  • ARI – Jaron Brown 26-yard pass from Drew Stanton (Drew Stanton-John Carlson pass), 3:32. Cardinals 17–14. Drive: 5 plays, 42 yards, 2:00.

Fourth quarter

  • No scoring plays.

Top passers

Top rushers

Top receivers

Top tacklers

Week 15: at St. Louis Rams

Week Fifteen: Arizona Cardinals at St. Louis Rams – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 0 6 3312
Rams 3 0 036

at Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri

Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
  • ARI –
  • STL –
Top rushers
  • ARI –
  • STL –
Top receivers
  • ARI –
  • STL –
Top tacklers
  • ARI –
  • STL –

Week 16: vs. Seattle Seahawks

Week Sixteen: Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Seahawks 0 14 02135
Cardinals 0 3 306

at University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona

  • Date: December 21
  • Game time: 6:30 pm. MST
  • Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
  • Game attendance: 63,806
  • Referee: Walt Anderson
  • TV announcers (NBC): Al Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
  • No scoring plays
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
Top passers
  • SEA –
  • ARI –
Top rushers
  • SEA –
  • ARI –
Top receivers
  • SEA –
  • ARI –
Top tacklers
  • SEA –
  • ARI –

Week 17: at San Francisco 49ers

Week Seventeen: Arizona Cardinals at San Francisco 49ers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 7 10 0017
49ers 7 6 7020

at Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, California

  • Date: December 28
  • Game time: 2:25 pm. MST/1:25 pm. PST
  • Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C), sunny
  • Game attendance: 70,699
  • Referee: Carl Cheffers
  • TV announcers (Fox): Thom Brennaman, David Diehl and Laura Okmin
  • Recap, Gamebook
Game information
First quarter
Second quarter
Third quarter
Fourth quarter
  • No scoring plays
Top passers
  • ARI –
  • SF –
Top rushers
  • ARI –
  • SF –
Top receivers
  • ARI –
  • SF –
Top tacklers
  • ARI –
  • SF –

This would snap the 49ers' 4-game losing streak in Levi's Stadium. With the loss, the Cardinals finished their season to 11-5.

Postseason

Round Date Opponent (seed) Result Record Venue Recap
Wild Card January 3, 2015 at Carolina Panthers (4) L 16–27 0–1 Bank of America Stadium Recap

NFC Wild Card Playoffs: at #4 Carolina Panthers

NFC Wild Card Playoffs: (#5) Arizona Cardinals at (#4) Carolina Panthers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 0 14 0216
Panthers 10 3 14027

at Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina

Game information
First quarter
  • CAR – Graham Gano 47-yard field goal, 11:27. Panthers 3–0. Drive: 7 plays, 19 yards, 2:03.
  • CAR – Jonathan Stewart 13-yard run (Graham Gano kick), 5:21. Panthers 10–0. Drive: 8 plays, 57 yards, 3:51.
Second quarter
  • ARI – Darren Fells 1-yard pass from Ryan Lindley (Chandler Catanzaro kick), 14:56. Panthers 10–7. Drive: 6 plays, 30 yards, 2:15.
  • ARI – Marion Grice 1-yard run (Chandler Catanzaro kick), 2:50. Cardinals 14–10. Drive: 4 plays, 17 yards, 2:04.
  • CAR – Graham Gano 39-yard field goal, 0:15. Cardinals 14–13. Drive: 9 plays, 59 yards, 2:35.
Third quarter
  • CAR – Fozzy Whittaker 39-yard pass from Cam Newton (Graham Gano kick), 5:36. Panthers 20–14. Drive: 1 play, 39 yards, 0:14.
  • CAR – Mike Tolbert 1-yard pass from Cam Newton (Graham Gano kick), 4:04. Panthers 27–14. Drive: 3 plays, 3 yard, 1:24.
Fourth quarter
Top passers
Top rushers
Top receivers
  • ARI – John Brown – 4 receptions, 34 yards
  • CAR – Fozzy Whittaker – 1 reception, 39 yards, TD

The Cardinals' offensive performance was historically bad as the team lost to the 7-8-1 Panthers, by a final score of 27-16, and were eliminated from the postseason. They committed three turnovers (two of them being red zone interceptions), gained only 8 first downs (and only 2 first downs in the second half) and recorded 78 net yards of offense, the fewest yards gained in a playoff game by any team in NFL postseason history. After a 9-1 start, the Cardinals went 2-5 in their final seven games.

Standings

Division

NFC West
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 W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
(1) Seattle Seahawks 12 4 0 .750 5–1 10–2 394 254 W6
(5) Arizona Cardinals 11 5 0 .688 3–3 8–4 310 299 L2
San Francisco 49ers 8 8 0 .500 2–4 7–5 306 340 W1
St. Louis Rams 6 10 0 .375 2–4 4–8 324 354 L3

Conference

NFC[2]
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# Team Division W L T PCT DIV CONF SOS SOV STK
Division leaders
1[a] Seattle Seahawks West 12 4 0 .750 5–1 10–2 .525 .513 W6
2[a] Green Bay Packers North 12 4 0 .750 5–1 9–3 .482 .440 W2
3[a] Dallas Cowboys East 12 4 0 .750 4–2 8–4 .445 .422 W4
4 Carolina Panthers South 7 8 1 .469 4–2 6–6 .490 .357 W4
Wild Cards
5[b] Arizona Cardinals West 11 5 0 .688 3–3 8–4 .523 .477 L2
6[b] Detroit Lions North 11 5 0 .688 5–1 9–3 .471 .392 L1
Did not qualify for the postseason
7 Philadelphia Eagles East 10 6 0 .625 4–2 6–6 .490 .416 W1
8 San Francisco 49ers West 8 8 0 .500 2–4 7–5 .527 .508 W1
9[c] New Orleans Saints South 7 9 0 .438 3–3 6–6 .486 .415 W1
10[c] Minnesota Vikings North 7 9 0 .438 1–5 6–6 .475 .308 W1
11[d] New York Giants East 6 10 0 .375 2–4 4–8 .512 .323 L1
12[d] Atlanta Falcons South 6 10 0 .375 5–1 6–6 .482 .380 L1
13[d] St. Louis Rams West 6 10 0 .375 2–4 4–8 .531 .427 L3
14 Chicago Bears North 5 11 0 .313 1–5 4–8 .529 .338 L5
15 Washington Redskins East 4 12 0 .250 2–4 2–10 .496 .422 L1
16 Tampa Bay Buccaneers South 2 14 0 .125 0–6 1–11 .486 .469 L6
Tiebreakers[e]
  1. ^ a b c Seattle, Green Bay and Dallas were ranked in seeds 1–3 based on conference record.
  2. ^ a b Arizona defeated Detroit head-to-head (Week 11, 14–6).
  3. ^ a b New Orleans defeated Minnesota head-to-head (Week 3, 20–9).
  4. ^ a b c The NY Giants defeated both Atlanta and St. Louis head-to-head (Atlanta: Week 5, 30–20; St. Louis: Week 16, 37–27), while Atlanta finished ahead of St. Louis based on conference record.
  5. ^ When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest-ranked remaining team from each division.

References

  1. ^ "Defense lifts Arizona Cardinals past St. Louis Rams".
  2. ^ "2014 Conference Standings". NFL.com. Retrieved December 11, 2023.

External links

  • Official website
  • v
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Arizona Cardinals
  • Founded in 1898
  • Played in Chicago (1920–1959), St. Louis (1960–1987), and formerly the Phoenix Cardinals (1988–1993)
  • Based in Glendale, Arizona
  • Headquartered in Tempe, Arizona
Franchise
Stadiums
Culture
Lore
Rivalries
Division championships (7)
Conference championships (1)
League championships (2)
Retired numbers
Current league affiliations
  • Category
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Arizona Cardinals seasons
Played in Chicago (1920–1959), St. Louis (1960–1987), and formerly the Phoenix Cardinals (1988–1993)
Bold indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl victory
Italics indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl appearance