2005 Arizona Cardinals season

2005 Arizona Cardinals season
2005 Arizona Cardinals season
Owner	Bill Bidwill
Head coach	Dennis Green
General manager	Rod Graves
Home field	Sun Devil Stadium
Results
Record	5–11
Division place	3rd NFC West
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	WR Larry Fitzgerald; K Neil Rackers
Uniform
	← 2004; Cardinals seasons; 2006 →;

The 2005 season was the Arizona Cardinals' 86th in the National Football League, their 107th overall and their 18th in Arizona. The team was unable to improve upon their 6–10 record from the previous season, and failed to make the playoffs for the seventh year in a row.^[1]

The October 2 game was the first regular season game to be played outside the United States, and was known as NFL Futbol Americano. The game was a Cardinals home game, and the Cardinals defeated their division rivals, the San Francisco 49ers, 31–14.

The Cardinals, as a team, had a paltry 1,138 rushing yards in 2005, only 71.1 yards per game.^[2] Remarkably, the Cardinals only had one 100-yard rushing game, when they ran for 129 yards in the season finale at Indianapolis.^[3] Arizona's season total is the fifth-fewest rushing yards by a team in a 16-game season.^[4]

The Cardinals passing offense, however, led the league, with 4,437 yards. Kurt Warner's 271.3 passing yards per game were third in the NFL, and his 24.2 pass completions per-game led the league.^[5] Wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald tied for the league lead in receptions, with 103,^{[note 1]} edging out his teammate Anquan Boldin, who had 102 (tied for third in the NFL)^{[note 2]} Fitzgerald's 1,409 yards, and Boldin’s 1,402 yards receiving were fourth and fifth in the NFL, respectively, in 2005. Boldin’s 100.1 receiving yards per game led the NFL.

The season also saw the Cardinals change their logo and uniforms, which remains in use today. It was also their final season playing at Sun Devil Stadium.

Offseason[]

NFL Draft[]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
2005 Arizona Cardinals draft
1	8	Antrel Rolle	Defensive Back	Miami (FL)
2	44	J.J. Arrington	Running Back	Cal
3	75	Eric Green	Defensive Back	Virginia Tech
3	95	Darryl Blackstock	Linebacker	Virginia
4	111	Elton Brown	Guard	Virginia
5	168	Lance Mitchell	Linebacker	Oklahoma
7	226	LeRon McCoy	Wide Receiver	Indiana (PA)
Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel[]

Staff[]

**2005 Arizona Cardinals staff**

	Front office President – Bill Bidwill Vice President and General Counsel – Michael Bidwill Vice President of Football Operations – Rod Graves Senior Director of Football Operations – John Idzik, Jr. Head coaches Head Coach – Dennis Green Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator – Keith Rowen Quarterbacks – Mike Kruczek Running Backs – Kirby Wilson Wide Receivers – Mike Wilson Tight Ends – Carl Hargrave Offensive Line – Everett Lindsay Offensive Quality Control – Bill Khayat			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Clancy Pendergast Defensive Line – Deek Pollard Linebackers – Frank Bush Defensive Backs – Richard Solomon Defensive Quality Control – Rick Courtright Special teams coaches Special Teams – Kevin O'Dea Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Steve Wetzel Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Ryan Capretta Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Daryl Lawrence

Roster[]

**2005 Arizona Cardinals final roster**

	Quarterbacks 6 Rohan Davey 12 Josh McCown 16 John Navarre Running backs 28 J. J. Arrington 22 Damien Anderson 30 Obafemi Ayanbadejo 32 James Jackson 33 Harold Morrow FB 31 Marcel Shipp Wide receivers 81 Anquan Boldin 11 Larry Fitzgerald 15 Carlyle Holiday 80 Bryant Johnson 82 Charles Lee 19 LeRon McCoy 87 Reggie Swinton KR/PR Tight ends 89 Adam Bergen 83 Eric Edwards		Offensive linemen 73 Jeremy Bridges G 61 Elton Brown G 75 Leonard Davis T 60 Nick Leckey C 65 C 79 Oliver Ross T 78 Fred Wakefield T Defensive linemen 93 Tim Bulman DT 90 Darnell Dockett DT 72 Ross Kolodziej DT 56 Chike Okeafor DE 67 Antonio Smith DE 96 R-Kal Truluck DT		Linebackers 55 Darryl Blackstock OLB 58 Karlos Dansby OLB 51 James Darling ILB 57 Orlando Huff OLB 53 Isaac Keys 52 Lance Mitchell Defensive backs 47 Aaron Francisco S 25 Eric Green CB 34 Robert Griffith FS 29 Quentin Harris S 27 David Macklin CB 20 Lamont Reid CB 21 Antrel Rolle CB 35 Ernest Shazor 26 Robert Tate CB 24 Adrian Wilson SS Special teams 48 Nathan Hodel LS 10 Scott Player P 1 Neil Rackers K		Reserve lists 76 Ian Allen T (IR) 92 Bertrand Berry DE (IR) 85 John Bronson TE (IR) 63 Bill Conaty C (IR) 98 Russell Davis DT (IR) 64 Adam Haayer G (IR) 54 Gerald Hayes ILB (IR) 42 James Hodgins FB (IR) 91 Langston Moore DT (IR) 97 Calvin Pace OLB (IR) 36 J. R. Redmond RB (IR) 71 Alex Stepanovich C (IR) 13 Kurt Warner QB (IR) 74 Reggie Wells G (IR) Practice squad 69 Rolando Cantu G 18 WR 68 T 62 Tyler King DE 66 Alan Reuber T 14 WR Rookies in italics

Regular season[]

Schedule[]

In the 2005 regular season, the Cardinals’ non-divisional, conference opponents were primarily from the NFC East, although they also played the Carolina Panthers from the NFC South, and the Detroit Lions from the NFC North. Their non-conference opponents were from the AFC South.

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	September 11	at New York Giants	L 19–42	0–1	Giants Stadium	78,387
2	September 18	St. Louis Rams	L 12–17	0–2	Sun Devil Stadium	45,160
3	September 25	at Seattle Seahawks	L 12–37	0–3	Qwest Field	64,843
4	October 2	San Francisco 49ers	W 31–14	1–3	Estadio Azteca	103,467
5	October 9	Carolina Panthers	L 24–20	1–4	Sun Devil Stadium	38,809
6	Bye
7	October 23	Tennessee Titans	W 20–10	2–4	Sun Devil Stadium	39,482
8	October 30	at Dallas Cowboys	L 13–34	2–5	Texas Stadium	62,068
9	November 6	Seattle Seahawks	L 19–33	2–6	Sun Devil Stadium	43,542
10	November 13	at Detroit Lions	L 21–29	2–7	Ford Field	61,091
11	November 20	at St. Louis Rams	W 38–28	3–7	Edward Jones Dome	65,750
12	November 27	Jacksonville Jaguars	L 17–24	3–8	Sun Devil Stadium	39,198
13	December 4	at San Francisco 49ers	W 17–10	4–8	Monster Park	60,439
14	December 11	Washington Redskins	L 13–17	4–9	Sun Devil Stadium	46,654
15	December 18	at Houston Texans	L 19–30	4–10	Reliant Stadium	70,024
16	December 24	Philadelphia Eagles	W 27–21	5–10	Sun Devil Stadium	44,723
17	January 1, 2006	at Indianapolis Colts	L 13–17	5–11	RCA Dome	57,211

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Season summary[]

Week 2 vs Rams[]

Week Two: St. Louis Rams (0–1) at Arizona Cardinals (0–1)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	7	3	7	0	17
Cardinals	3	3	3	3	12

at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona

Date: September 18
Game time: 4:05 p.m. EST
Game weather: 94 °F (34 °C)
Game attendance: 45,160
Referee: Jeff Triplette
TV: Fox
Pro-Football-Reference.com

Game information

First quarter

STL – Torry Holt 19-yard pass from Marc Bulger (Jeff Wilkins kick), 11:42. Rams 7–0. Drive: 7 plays, 80 yards, 3:18.
ARI — Neil Rackers 29-yard field goal, 5:38. Rams 7–3. Drive: 10 plays, 57 yards, 3:19.

Second quarter

ARI – Neil Rackers 26-yard field goal, 8:44. Rams 7–6. Drive: 8 plays, 37 yards, 3:59.
STL – Jeff Wilkins 29-yard field goal, 3:42. Rams 10–6. Drive: 10 plays, 69 yards, 5:02.

Third quarter

ARI – Neil Rackers 48-yard field goal, 10:23. Rams 10–9. Drive: 9 plays, 45 yards, 4:37.
STL – Steven Jackson 7-yard run (Jeff Wilkins kick), 5:45. Rams 17–9. Drive: 8 plays, 76 yards, 4:38.

Fourth quarter

ARI – Neil Rackers 35-yard field goal, 6:59. Rams 17–12. Drive: 9 plays, 56 yards, 5:48.

Top passers

STL – Marc Bulger – 18/29, 216 yards, TD, INT
ARI – Kurt Warner – 29/42, 327 yards, INT

Top rushers

STL – Steven Jackson – 18 rushes, 93 yards, TD
ARI – Marcel Shipp – 12 rushes, 54 yards

Top receivers

STL – Torry Holt – 4 receptions, 70 yards, TD
ARI – Anquan Boldin – 8 receptions, 119 yards

Standings[]

NFC West
view talk	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
⁽¹⁾ Seattle Seahawks	13	3	0	.813	6–0	10–2	454	271	L1
St. Louis Rams	6	10	0	.375	1–5	3–9	363	429	W1
Arizona Cardinals	5	11	0	.313	3–3	4–8	311	387	L1
San Francisco 49ers	4	12	0	.250	2–4	3–9	239	428	W2

Notes[]

^ Tied with Carolina’s Steve Smith
^ Tied with St. Louis's Torry Holt.

References[]

[6] Tied with Carolina’s Steve Smith

[7] Tied with St. Louis's Torry Holt.

[1] Arizona Cardinals Franchise Encyclopedia

[2] Pro-Football-Reference.com: 2005 NFL Standings, Team & Offensive Statistics

[3] Pro-Football-Reference.com: 2005 Arizona Cardinals

[4] Pro-Football-Reference.com: In a single season, from 1978 to 2011, in the regular season, sorted by ascending Rushing Yds | as of 2011 season

[5] Pro-Football-Reference: 2005 NFL Leaders and Leaderboards

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[note 1]

[note 2]

v t Arizona Cardinals
Founded in 1898 Played in Chicago (1920–1959), St. Louis (1960–1987), and formerly the Phoenix Cardinals (1988–1993) Based in Glendale, Arizona Headquartered in Tempe, Arizona
Franchise	History in Chicago in St. Louis Seasons Head coaches Players Quarterbacks First-round draft picks
Stadiums	Normal Park Comiskey Park Wrigley Field Forbes Field Soldier Field Busch Stadium Busch Memorial Stadium Sun Devil Stadium State Farm Stadium
Culture	Charles Bidwill Bill Bidwill Cheerleaders Big Red (mascot) Jerry Maguire
Lore	1925 Chicago Cardinals–Milwaukee Badgers scandal 1925 NFL Championship controversy Card-Pitt Million Dollar Backfield Chicago Cardinals–Toronto Argonauts exhibition game Fútbol Americano 2006 game vs. Chicago Bears Hail Murray
Rivalries	Chicago Bears Kansas City Chiefs
Division championships (7)	1947 1948 1974 1975 2008 2009 2015
Conference championships (1)	2008
League championships (2)	1925 1947
Retired numbers	8 40 77 88 99
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: West Division
Category

v t Arizona Cardinals seasons
Played in Chicago (1920–1959), St. Louis (1960–1987), and formerly the Phoenix Cardinals (1988–1993)
1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Bold indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl victory Italics indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl appearance