The Arizona Cardinals were a playoff team in the 2022 NFL season but collapsed to a 4-13 mark in 2022 and saw quarterback Kyler Murray go down with a season-ending torn ACL that might keep him out for the start of the 2023 campaign as well. What to expect from the Cardinals?

A Closer Look at the Arizona Cardinals 2023 NFL Season

Your 2023 #AZCardinals schedule has arrived.

Get Your Tickets Now ️: https://t.co/WMT4hUeyNs pic.twitter.com/cqyuY0zIWU

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) May 12, 2023

• NFL Week 1: at Washington Commanders — 1 p.m. (Fox)
• NFL Week 2: vs. New York Giants — 4:05 p.m. (Fox)
• NFL Week 3: vs. Dallas Cowboys — 4:25 p.m. (Fox)
• NFL Week 4: at San Francisco 49ers — 4:25 p.m. (Fox)
• NFL Week 5: vs. Cincinnati Bengals — 4:05 p.m. (Fox)
• NFL Week 6: at Los Angeles Rams — 4:25 p.m. (Fox)
• NFL Week 7: at Seattle Seahawks — 4:05 p.m. (Fox)
• NFL Week 8: vs. Baltimore Ravens — 4:25 p.m. (CBS)
• NFL Week 9: at Cleveland Browns — 1 p.m. (CBS)
• NFL Week 10: vs. Atlanta Falcons — 4:05 p.m. (CBS)
• NFL Week 11: at Houston Texans — 1 p.m. (CBS)
• NFL Week 12: vs. Los Angeles Rams — 4:05 p.m. (FOX)
• NFL Week 13: at Pittsburgh Steelers — 1 p.m. (CBS)
• NFL Week 14: BYE
• NFL Week 15: vs. San Francisco 49ers — 4:05 p.m. (CBS)
• NFL Week 16: at Chicago Bears — 4:25 p.m. (FOX)
• NFL Week 17: at Philadelphia Eagles — 1 p.m. (FOX)
• NFL Week 18: vs. Seattle Seahawks — TBD (TBD)

The Cardinals were one of four teams to have any primetime games scheduled in 2023, joining the Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts and Atlanta Falcons. Arizona opens the season Sept. 10 in Washington as a 6.5-point underdog. That would likely come down if Murray is available. Arizona’s opponents have a combined strength of schedule of .519 heading into 2023, good enough for 11th in the league. As of now, they stand at +20000 to win Super Bowl LVIII.

What changes have the Cardinals done recently?

Few teams underwent more changes this offseason. The new GM is Monti Ossenfort. The 44-year-old has been in the NFL for 21 seasons and was with the Titans for the past three seasons after 15 with the New England Patriots. In New England he started as a scout and eventually climbed to be the team’s director of college scouting. He was with the Patriots for four of their Super Bowl wins.

Owner Michael Bidwill wanted to hire the GM before a head coach and then the Cards decided on Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon to replace the fired Kliff Kingsbury, who had a 28-37-1 record in his four seasons. Under Gannon in 2022, the Eagles ranked eighth in total defense, ranking first in pass defense, and recorded 70 sacks – 15 more than any other NFL team. Philly reached the Super Bowl, which delayed Gannon’s official hiring.

It would be a huge upset if Murray is ready for Week 1 considering his torn ACL happened in December. Backup Colt McCoy is dealing with his own injury. The only other QBs on the roster are journeyman David Blough and rookie Clayton Tune. The former University of Houston star, a fifth-round pick, has looked good in OTAs. Some think he could be the next Brock Purdy, the last pick of the 2022 draft by the 49ers. Following injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo, Purdy stepped in and helped San Francisco win five straight games as the starter in addition to back-to-back playoff victories.

“What I like about him is he’s not scared. He is not scared. There’s a couple throws that he made out there the last week or so and I’m like, ‘Man, that’s a tight fit right there.’ And he was like, ‘I know. I’ll get it, I’ll put it in there.’ So I think his handle of the offense has impressed myself and I know the coaches because we’ve thrown a lot at him to operate the offense the way we want the quarterback position operated, and he’s making some good reads,” Gannon said of Tune.

The Cardinals and the 2023 NFL Draft

Arizona had an interesting draft. Instead of standing pat at No. 3 overall and taking Ohio State offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr. with the third overall pick, they first traded back to 12th overall, acquiring the 33rd overall pick and Houston’s first- and third-round pick in 2024, before giving up the 33rd pick to move back up to No. 6 for Johnson. It was the first year since Murray was drafted (2019) that the Cardinals drafted an offensive player in the first round. Protecting Murray will be paramount as he returns from ACL surgery and Johnson will be part of that.

Star wideout DeAndre Hopkins was released a few weeks ago in a salary-cap move. Arizona ate $21,077,776 in dead cap with the Hopkins release, saving $8,911,114 in cap space. Hopkins averaged 7.1 catches per game (fourth in NFL) and 79.7 receiving yards per game (10th in NFL) despite only playing nine games last season. He’s been a first team All-Pro three times and selected to the Pro Bowl five times in his 10 NFL seasons.

Other team movements

In free agency, the Cardinals did little to upgrade their roster, opting to let their top two free agents — DI Zach Allen and CB Byron Murphy Jr. — sign elsewhere. The team did take LSU pass-rusher BJ Ojulari with its second-round pick. After losing three of their primary pass-rushers in J.J. Watt, Zach Allen and Markus Golden during this offseason, the Cardinals were in desperate need of reinforcements. No returning Cardinal had more than four sacks last season.

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READ MORE: Arizona Cardinals 2023 NFL Season Betting Guide