Cardinals aim to change narrative
The Arizona Cardinals are not exactly the pinnacle of professional football over their first 96 years of existence. The team came into the National Football League at the same time the league itself was born, all the way back in 1920. At the time, the Cardinals belonged to Chicago, where they would stay all the way through the 1959 season.
Unfortunately for their supporters, the Cardinals were never much for winning. While teams like the Boston Red Sox, Detroit Lions, Cleveland Browns, Chicago Cubs and Toronto Maple Leafs draw ample attention for long title droughts both current and defunct, the Cardinals have plenty of bad history that surprisingly gets forgotten.
In 96 years, this club has won two championships. The first of which came in 1925, and only because of one of the oddest situation in professional sports history. Chicago was going to finish in second place until the NFL decided to strip the Pottsville Maroons of their title, based on the notion that they played an illegal exhibition game. The Cardinals then won a legitimate, undisputed title in 1947, beating the Philadelphia Eagles. It’s the last one to date for the Cardinals franchise.
Now, head coach Bruce Arians and Co. are trying to change the narrative around this team. Frankly, the Cardinals have largely been forgotten about for much of their history, mostly because they have moved three teams and always struggle to have a healthy fan base. In Arizona, the fans have begun to really support the team with the organization paying for talent, a nice indoor stadium to watch games in, and a good product.
On Sunday, the Cardinals will travel to face the Carolina Panthers in the NFC Championship Game. Carolina is 15-1 and a three-point favorite in the contest, although many believe Arizona to be the best team in football. With a win, the Cardinals would be in the Super Bowl for only the second time in team history, and the first since the 2008 season when they lost a heartbreaker to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
For any team to go to the Super Bowl, it is a massive accomplishment. For Arizona, it’s tenfold. The Cardinals have only reached the postseason on 10 occasions in 96 years. Arizona has won a game in the playoffs in just five of those trips. In St. Louis, where the Cardinals played from 1960-87, the team never hosted or won a postseason game, despite having stars ranging from Jim Hart and Mel Gray to Dan Dierdorf and Terry Metcalf.
Arizona is 60 minutes away from getting to a second Super Bowl, perhaps as the favorite this time around. The Cardinals would have the chance to finally become a champion, something that fans in three cities have been waiting much too long for.
