Three Reasons Why Packers Will Lose to Cardinals Today Includes Flight Delay

The Green Bay Packers’ flight to Arizona faced a significant delay on Saturday. That’s one of three reasons why the Packers should be on upset alert at the Cardinals on Sunday.

Arizona Cardinals defensive end Calais Campbell against the Packers in 2015. | Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – On paper, the Green Bay Packers should roll over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday in Glendale, Ariz. The Cardinals have lost four consecutive games. Their top running backs are on injured reserve and their electric starting quarterback is not expected to play.

However, the Cardinals are better than their record indicates and the Packers were thrown for an unexpected loss on Saturday. Those are among three reasons why the Packers will lose.

1. Flight Delays for Packers

The Packers were scheduled to leave for Arizona early Saturday afternoon for what should have been a mundane road trip.

Instead, one of the Packers’ two flights – the one with the players and coaches – had mechanical issues and a new plane had to be brought from Detroit. The flight was supposed to leave Green Bay around 1:30 p.m. but instead didn’t begin taxiing until almost 6 hours later.

Players and coaches are creatures of habit. No doubt the team adjusted as best it could, but the usual itinerary of landing, arriving at the team hotel and having team meetings was thrown out the window.

The Packers are winless on the road. The long delay before a long flight certainly will not help matters.

What would be the key to the first road win of the season?

“Energy,” safety Xavier McKinney said this week. “Just making sure that our energy is through the roof. I think we’re going to have really good energy because we’re going to have our fans. I’m sure it’s going to be a lot at the game. I think within the locker room, everyone’s got to have high energy and be ready to go.”

The Packers are 0-1-1 on the road this season, with an upset loss at Cleveland followed by a tie at Dallas. Those teams are a combined 3-8-1.

“It’s something we’re going to have to find a way to get past,” quarterback Jordan Love said. “Like you said, we haven’t won yet – an L and a tie. We’ve got to find a way to go out there and be our best on the road and get over that hump.”

2. Better Than You’d Think

You have to be a bad team to lose four consecutive games in the parity-filled NFL. That’s what common sense would tell you, anyway.

The Cardinals are 2-4, losing four in a row after opening the season with consecutive wins. However, they lost 16-15 at San Francisco, 23-20 at home against Seattle, 22-21 at home against Tennessee and 31-27 at Indianapolis. That’s a total of nine points.

The 49ers, who are 4-2 and in first place in the NFC West, won on a last-play field goal. The Seahawks, who are 4-2 and in second place in the NFC West, won on a last-play field goal. The Titans, who at 1-5 are the outlier, won on a last-play field goal. The Colts, who are 5-1 and have the best record in the AFC, won when the Cardinals’ fourth-down pass from the 9 fell incomplete and defensive holding was not called against premier tight end Trey McBride.

Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride (85) makes a reception for a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts. | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

“This is a team that’s lost four games in a row by nine points,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “I read something that that’s unprecedented. So, this is a good football team, and we better be ready to play.”

LaFleur read correctly. The Cardinals are the only team since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger to lose three consecutive games on walk-off field goals. The 49ers, Seahawks and Colts are a combined 13-5.

“I think the Cardinals are a really good team,” quarterback Jordan Love said. “Watching their defense throughout the week, I think they do a lot of good things. Obviously, we played them last year, and I think that defense has gotten better since last year.

“I don’t think we overlook any teams. They’ve been in some close games (and) haven’t come out with the outcomes they wanted, but I still think they’re a really good team. Definitely, we’re focusing on us this week and going out there and trying to get a win on the road.”

The Cardinals don’t excel in any phase of the game but they are really good at the yards that win games. Offensively, they are only 22nd in total offense but they’re sixth on third down and sixth in goal-to-go situations. On the other side of the ball, they are only 24th in total defense but they’re seventh on third down and seventh in goal-to-go situations.

“S**, we’ve got to do what we’ve got to do,” safety Xavier McKinney said. “Regardless of what they’re going through, how many games they’ve lost, how many games they’ve won, we’ve got to control what we can control, and that’s go out there and play and go out there and execute.

“We’re not really thinking about their previous games – obviously, we’re looking at them – but wins and losses, that doesn’t really mean much in this league. You can go in there and play anybody and anything can happen on a Sunday. I think we’re very aware of that and we’re locked in and focused.”

Mentally, the Cardinals say they’re in a good spot. If they can win this game, they’ll have the bye to get healthy before going to Dallas and getting rematches against the Seahawks and 49ers. A chance to resurrect their season will begin on Sunday against the jet-lagged Packers.

Coach Jonathan Gannon’s team is handling the heartbreak losses, “Probably as good as you can,” he told reporters this week. “They're not happy. We feel like we're right there but, to get in the win column, we have to do a little bit more.

“I am proud of them (for) the response (over) the last couple games here and how those have went, and (then) going on the road to play a good team. I thought our response was the right response. There's no pointing blame. There's no finger pointing. Guys have good energy. They have good enthusiasm. They're continuing to play hard. We've just got to get it turned.”

3. Jordan Love Under Pressure

The Cardinals have two high-quality pass rushers with defensive end Josh Sweat and ageless defensive tackle Calais Campbell.

Sweat ranks among the NFL leaders with five sacks. Among 73 edge rushers with at least 100 pass-rushing snaps, Sweat is 18th in pass-rush win rate. He is 26th with 21 pressures and fellow edge Baron Browning is 30th with 19.

“On third down, they’ll have him rush inside, outside, and he’s a problem,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said of Sweat. “He’s a really good rusher, really good football player, and we’re going to have to do a really good job on him just playing with great fundamentals and technique, because he can get an edge on you in a hurry and get to the quarterback.”

Campbell has three sacks. Among 64 defensive tackles with at least 100 pass-rushing snaps, he is 16th in pressures and 25th in pass-rush win rate.

“It’s pretty impressive,” LaFleur said. “Kind of reminds me of in terms of a guy that’s been doing a long time, like Marcedes (Lewis). He’s had some very disruptive plays this year, drew that holding penalty in the end zone versus the Niners that led to a safety. He’s an impressive guy. I’ve got a lot of respect for him.”

That’s not an incredible pass rush. In fact, the Cardinals are tied for 26th in sack percentage. But Sweat and Campbell are impact players, and they should get some juice from playing at home against a road-weary offensive line.

Quarterback Jordan Love has been unbelievable in a clean pocket. When pressured, though, it’s a different story. Of 34 quarterbacks to be pressured on at least 40 dropbacks, Love is 32nd in completion percentage, last in yards per attempt and 30th in passer rating.

With Sweat and Campbell, the Cardinals have a chance to pressure their way to an upset victory.

The #Packers haven't won a road game this season. That will change on Sunday. Here are three reasons why they'll beat the Cardinals. ⬇️https://t.co/0jydTGCHGg

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) October 18, 2025