The Good, Bad and Ugly of Cardinals Loss to Texans

What's there to say after a game like that?

Dec 14, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett (7) directs a play during the first quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

The Arizona Cardinals found the loss column yet again, this time falling to the Houston Texans in Week 15 action.

The Cardinals have now lost their last 11-of-12 games following their 40-20 defeat in H-Town, and with three weeks left, there's some serious questions the organization needs to answer.

For a quick recap, you can catch that here.

Evaluating the good, bad and ugly from NRG Stadium:

The Good: Trey McBride

Dec 14, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride (85) and tight end Pharaoh Brown (49) celebrate a touchdown during the second quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

That's about the only good thing going for the Cardinals right now.

Arizona's star tight end continues to dominate, this time having his best outing of the season to pair with 12 receptions for 134 yards and two touchdowns in Houston.

The Texans tried nearly everything to stop McBride, and even with all attention on the tight end, he still managed to have an impact.

"I'm proud of him, too, because he kept his composure," Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon said after the game of McBride.

"They obviously had a plan for him, a couple different things they were trying to do against him, and he still makes plays for us. He's obviously a premier player, for a reason. I'm glad we have him."

McBride made NFL history today -- you can read more about that here.

The Bad: Complementary Football

Dec 14, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans wide receiver Nico Collins (12) and quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) celebrate a touchdown during the fourth quarter against the Arizona Cardinals at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

With three weeks left in the season, the Cardinals have yet to play a game from start to finish that was applaudable.

Arizona allowed Houston to score 17 points in the first quarter (a franchise record for the Texans) and ultimately gave up 40 points for the fourth time in their last six games.

They haven't scored over 24 points once in the last six weeks and haven't hit 30 points all season.

"We didn't do enough in all three phases. We got to play a little bit better here, complimentary football," Gannon said after the loss.

"Any time we had chances to get some momentum back, one of the three phases kind of let us down. We can't dig a hole like that versus a good football team."

The Cardinals can't get out of the gates. They can't close games. It seems like playing four quarters of complementary football just isn't on the menu this season.

Neither side of the ball is playing well at this point in time, and that's not a recipe for success.

The Ugly: Injuries Piling Up

Dec 14, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Arizona Cardinals players kneel as wide receiver Andre Baccellia (82) is treated by medical personnel following an injury on a kickoff return during the second quarter against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

This is quite the topic in the desert.

What's the line between "the Cardinals had nearly 30 players on injured reserve this season" and "all NFL teams deal with injuries, it's on coaches to figure it out"?

Arizona's towing that line very finely.

Today was just another case of that, as the Cardinals lost several players (including Andre Baccellia, who was stretchered off) throughout today's game.

The Cardinals simply aren't playing good. That's been clear and established -- though it's tough to wonder how much injuries have truly decimated this team.

Would Arizona be in the playoff hunt if they were more healthy? Probably not, though the laundry list of guys who have missed time can't be ignored either.

The Cardinals' injury luck has been downright disgusting in 2025.