The Cardinals and running back James Conner reworked the last season of his contract to keep him in Arizona for the 2026 season. Conner was set to earn $6.39 million this coming season with a $9.83 million cap hit. To avoid being released for cap savings, Conner's deal was revised.
A recent source told them the former Patriot is "[LaFleur's] guy". The connection between LaFleur and Jimmy G is obvious. The QB has spent the last two seasons as Matt Stafford's backup, and while Brissett is a viable bridge option, the opportunity to cash him in for a few Day 3 picks to improve their cache of draft picks ahead of a rebuild seems a reasonable course of action.
New Cardinals coach Mike LaFleur will retain defensive coordinator Nick Rallis, a source confirmed to ESPN NFL Insider Jeremy Fowler. Rallis was brought to Arizona in 2023 by former head coach Jonathan Gannon, who was fired on Jan. 5 after a 3-14 season. Rallis will enter his fourth season as the Cardinals' defensive coordinator. Arizona also plans on hiring former Giants special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial in the same role, according to reports.
Cal football general manager Ron Rivera may not be done with the NFL after all. The former coach of the Carolina Panthers and Washington Commanders interviewed recently with the Arizona Cardinals for their vacant coaching position, according to Dianna Russini of The Athletic. Rivera, 64, took over the Golden Bears' football program less than year ago, aiming to use his NFL experience to help his alma mater fast-forward into the new world of college football, complete with Name, Image and Likeness,
This one comes after Arizona fired coach Jonathan Gannon on Monday. The search started Monday but won't be a quick turn. Ossenfort said he doesn't have a timeline for making a hire and that the rules on interviewing coaches whose teams are in the playoffs prevent the process from proceeding too quickly. Then again, Ossenfort said neither he nor owner Michael Bidwill want the interview process to be expedited.
Following their decisions to shelve Brock Bowers and Maxx Crosby, the Raiders secured the No. 1 overall pick. After entering Week 17 in that slot, the Giants - as they did in 2024 - slipped out of the top two thanks to a late-season win. Big Blue's victories over the Raiders and Cowboys dropped them to No. 5, with today's win allowing the Jets, Cardinals and Titans to leapfrog them.
CINCINNATI -- First, the cheers rang out from inside Paycor Stadium. Then an hour or so later, they boomed through the Cincinnati Bengals locker room, a raucous celebration that boomed through the walls. For the first time in his life, Bengals offensive lineman Cody Ford heard a whole venue chanting his name. On a day that featured several touchdowns in a 37-14 win over the Arizona Cardinals, no play was celebrated more than his 21-yard reception late in the third quarter.
Trey McBride set the NFL record for most receptions by a tight end in a single season during the Arizona Cardinals' 37-14 loss to the Bengals in Cincinnati on Sunday. The Pro Bowler's record-setting 117th catch came with 4:41 left in the fourth quarter on a 5-yard hitch route. He finished with 10 catches for 76 yards, capping his day with an 18-yard touchdown in the final minutes.
In a battle between two of the most tortured fanbases the NFC has ever produced, the Atlanta Falcons and Arizona Cardinals have historically just about shared the spoils in their respective histories head to head, with the Cards edging out a narrow 18-16 lead. The former St. Louis, turned Phoenix, turned Arizona Cardinals do not have a great history of success in the NFL, but they sure were good at beating the Falcons, after Atlanta's inception into the NFL world in the 1960s.
TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Arizona Cardinals running back room was depleted even more Tuesday when Bam Knight was put on injured reserve with an ankle injury, ending his season with three games left. Knight suffered the injury in Sunday's 40-20 loss to the Houston Texans. Knight is the third Cardinals running back on injured reserve, joining James Conner and Trey Benson.
On Friday, Arizona Cardinals right tackle Jonah Williams was placed on injured reserve and will miss the rest of the season. Williams will undergo season-ending surgery for a shoulder injury that he suffered in Arizona's Week 10 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, coach Jonathan Gannon said Friday. "He is a starter, good player," Gannon said. "Just he wasn't going to be able to play the rest of the year."
Conner, a sixth-round pick from Texas, has yet to debut as a rookie after suffering a knee injury in the preseason. The Cardinals placed Conner on IR with a return designation when they trimmed their roster to 53 players on Aug. 26. Now that Conner's back at practice, the Cardinals will have 21 days to activate him. Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson will miss Thursday's game against the Jets with a toe injury,
Bill Barnwell is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com. He analyzes football on and off the field like no one else on the planet, writing about in-season X's and O's, offseason transactions and so much more. He is the host of theBill Barnwell Show podcast, with episodes released weekly. Barnwell joined ESPN in 2011 as a staff writer at Grantland.
The injury occurred late in the second quarter on a second-and-3 pass from quarterback Jacoby Brissett to Jones in the back of the end zone. The pass was incomplete, but Jones didn't go down at first. A few seconds after the pass, Jones raised his foot awkwardly and then looked behind him down at his left foot. He left the game and then was carted to the locker room.
But Monday night's win did more than end a winning drought. It created a quarterback controversy. Kyler Murray is the established, incumbent, bona fide starter with the $230.5 million contract but the Cardinals offense looked better and more efficient, both statistically and to the naked eye, with Jacoby Brissett running it. Brissett now owns the top three passing games of the season - and he's started three times.
