Madden Predicts Disaster Arizona Cardinals Season

ARIZONA -- If the Arizona Cardinals' 2025 season is anything like our Madden NFL 26 simulation suggests, we could be in for quite a roller coaster ride.

If that roller coaster had no seatbelts.

We're days away from the Cardinals battling the New Orleans Saints to begin Week 1 (check out our staff predictions here) - which will be the first of many tests for Jonathan Gannon's crew in what fans hope to be a playoff season in the desert.

That's not close to being the case, if the Electronic Arts' newest NFL simulation game has any say.

Cardinals Crash and Burn in Madden Season Sim

Arizona Cardinals QB Kyler Murra — Aug 23, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) warms up before the game against the Las Vegas Raiders at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

*Before we get into it - we played no games and let the computer simulate every matchup. We also turned injuries off to avoid any scenario where a major injury could sway the results.*

This season - much like Arizona's 2024 campaign - can basically be divided into two parts: before and after the bye week.

After seven weeks of football, the Cardinals entered their bye week with a 4-3 record with wins over the New Orleans Saints, Seattle Seahawks, Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers.

arizona cardinals madden 26 sim | Donnie Druin

After Week 8... the wheels fell off the wagon. Hard.

Arizona lost their final eight of ten matchups in the regular season, which included their final six games. Their only wins in the back half of the schedule came against the Seattle Seahawks and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Six of Arizona's losses came in one-score games.

Arizona Cardinals Madden 26 Simulation | Donnie Druin

When the dust settled, the Cardinals missed the postseason and finished third in the NFC West behind the San Francisco 49ers (11-6) and Los Angeles Rams (8-9) while the Seattle Seahawks (5-12) weren't far behind.

Jonathan Gannon was also fired at the end of the year as a result of the poor record. This would put Arizona on their third head coach in five seasons entering 2026.

For those curious, here's what the playoff picture looked like:

The Cardinals' offense finished in the following categories:

Total offense: 8th
Passing offense: 5th
Rushing offense: 18th
Points per game: 22nd

Kyler Murray completed 68% of his passes for 4,058 yards and 26 TD to 13 INT while James Conner reached 1,050 rushing yards. Michael Wilson and Marvin Harrison Jr. respectively had 1,000+yard receiving seasons while Zay Jones was just 31 yards shy of doing so himself.

Arizona's defense was as follows:

Total defense: 7th
Passing defense: 13th
Rushing defense: 9th
Points per game: 13th

The Cardinals' defense brought home 49 sacks and just two interceptions on the year.