1996 Arizona Cardinals season

1996 Arizona Cardinals season
1996 Arizona Cardinals season
Owner	Bill Bidwill
Head coach	Vince Tobin
Home field	Sun Devil Stadium
Results
Record	7–9
Division place	4th NFC East
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	FB Larry Centers; WR Rob Moore; CB Aeneas Williams
AP All-Pros	FB Larry Centers (1st team); CB Aeneas Williams (2nd team)

The 1996 Arizona Cardinals season was the franchise's 98th season, 77th in the National Football League and ninth in Arizona. The team improved upon their previous output of 4–12, winning seven games.[1] Despite this improvement, the Cardinals failed to qualify for the playoffs for the fourteenth consecutive season.

The low point of the season was providing a notorious New York Jets team with its only win in front of fewer than thirty thousand people. This was the first time the Cardinals had opposed the Jets since 1978.[2] The reason for this is that before the admission of the Texans in 2002, NFL scheduling formulas for games outside a team’s division were much more influenced by table position during the previous season.[3]

This was Boomer Esiason's only season with the Cardinals as he would re-sign with the Cincinnati Bengals after this season.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1996 Arizona Cardinals draft
1	3	Simeon Rice *	Defensive end	Illinois
2	32	Leeland McElroy	Running back	Texas A&M
3	64	Johnny McWilliams	Tight end	USC
4	112	Aaron Graham	Center	Nebraska
5	137	James Dexter	Offensive tackle	South Carolina
5	161	Harry Stamps	Offensive tackle	Oklahoma
5	162	Dell McGee		Auburn
6	169	Mike Foley	Defensive end	New Hampshire
7	212	Jarius Hayes	Tight end	North Alabama
Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

Staff

**1996 Arizona Cardinals staff**

	Front office President – Bill Bidwill Vice president – Larry Wilson Assistant general manager – Joe Woolley Assistant to the president – Bob Ferguson Director of pro scouting – Keith Kidd Director of college scouting – Bo Bolinger Head coaches Head coach – Vince Tobin Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator – Jim Fassel Running backs – Jim Skipper Wide receivers – Vic Rapp Tight ends/quality control – Geep Chryst Offensive line – Carl Mauck			Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Dave McGinnis Defensive line – Joe Greene Linebackers – Glenn Pires Defensive backs – Larry Marmie Special teams coaches Special teams – Al Everest Strength and conditioning Strength and conditioning – Bob Rogucki

Roster

**1996 Arizona Cardinals final roster**

	Quarterbacks 15 Stoney Case 7 Boomer Esiason 11 Kent Graham 5 Chad May Running backs 37 Larry Centers FB 36 Ryan Christopherson FB 32 LeShon Johnson 30 Leeland McElroy KR 40 Derrick Moore 45 Cedric Smith FB Wide receivers 82 Stevie Anderson 84 Marcus Dowdell PR 83 Anthony Edwards 85 Rob Moore 81 Frank Sanders Tight ends 80 Pat Carter 89 Jarius Hayes 87 Johnny McWilliams		Offensive linemen 75 Lomas Brown T 62 Mike Devlin C/G 64 James Dexter T 54 Aaron Graham C 66 Eric Jonassen T 73 Matt Joyce T 60 Anthony Redmon G 78 Joe Staysniak G/T 68 Joe Wolf T Defensive linemen 63 Michael Bankston DE 76 Jerry Drake DT 92 Eric England DE 96 Brad Ottis DE 79 Simeon Rice DE 98 Eric Swann DT 94 Bernard Wilson DT		Linebackers 58 Eric Hill MLB 56 Terry Irving OLB 59 Seth Joyner OLB 52 Wesley Leasy OLB 55 Devon McDonald OLB 57 Ronald McKinnon MLB 95 Jamir Miller OLB Defensive backs 46 Brent Alexander FS 28 Tommy Bennett SS 23 Ronnie Bradford CB 43 Matt Darby SS 44 D. J. Johnson CB 42 Kwamie Lassiter FS 47 JJ McCleskey CB 27 Tito Paul CB 35 Aeneas Williams CB Special teams 3 Kevin Butler K 10 Jeff Feagles P 86 Trey Junkin LS		Reserve lists 90 Blaine Berger DT (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 65 Ernest Dye T (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 67 Duval Love G (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 70 Lance Scott C (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 74 Rob Selby G (IRTooltip Injured reserve) Practice squad 16 Fred Brock WR 61 Ryan Leahy G 24 Dell McGee CB -- Leslie Ratliffe T 17 Michael Watkins WR 53 active, 5 inactive, 5 practice squad Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	September 1	at Indianapolis Colts	L 13–20	0–1	RCA Dome	48,133
2	September 8	Miami Dolphins	L 10–38	0–2	Sun Devil Stadium	55,444
3	September 15	at New England Patriots	L 0–31	0–3	Foxboro Stadium	59,118
4	September 22	at New Orleans Saints	W 28–14	1–3	Louisiana Superdome	34,316
5	September 29	St. Louis Rams	W 31–28 _(OT)	2–3	Sun Devil Stadium	33,116
6	Bye
7	October 13	at Dallas Cowboys	L 3–17	2–4	Texas Stadium	64,096
8	October 20	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 13–9	3–4	Sun Devil Stadium	27,738
9	October 27	New York Jets	L 21–31	3–5	Sun Devil Stadium	28,088
10	November 3	at New York Giants	L 8–16	3–6	Giants Stadium	68,262
11	November 10	at Washington Redskins	W 37–34	4–6	RFK Stadium	51,929
12	November 17	New York Giants	W 31–23	5–6	Sun Devil Stadium	34,924
13	November 24	Philadelphia Eagles	W 36–30	6–6	Sun Devil Stadium	36,175
14	December 1	at Minnesota Vikings	L 17–41	6–7	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome	45,767
15	December 8	Dallas Cowboys	L 6–10	6–8	Sun Devil Stadium	70,763
16	December 15	Washington Redskins	W 27–26	7–8	Sun Devil Stadium	34,260
17	December 22	at Philadelphia Eagles	L 19–29	7–9	Veterans Stadium	63,658
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 4: at New Orleans Saints

Week Four: Arizona Cardinals at New Orleans Saints – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Cardinals	3	3	8	14	28
Saints	0	7	0	7	14

at Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Date: September 22
Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST/11:00 a.m. MST
Game weather: Played indoors (domed stadium)
Game attendance: 34,316
Box score

Game information

First quarter

ARI – Greg Davis 25-yard field goal, 8:13. Cardinals 3–0.

Second quarter

ARI – Greg Davis 25-yard field goal, 7:25. Cardinals 6–0.
NOR – Brian Jones 11-yard blocked punt return (Doug Brien kick), 2:15. Saints 7–6.

Third quarter

ARI – Rob Moore 20-yard pass from Kent Graham (Rob Moore pass from Kent Graham), 12:25. Cardinals 14–7.

Fourth quarter

ARI – LeShon Johnson 56-yard rush (Greg Davis kick), 15:00. Cardinals 21–7.
ARI – LeShon Johnson 70-yard rush (Greg Davis kick), 14:46. Cardinals 28–7.
NOR – Haywood Jeffires 23-yard pass from Jim Everett (Doug Brien kick), 13:05. Cardinals 28–14.

Top passers

ARI – Kent Graham – 11/25, 165 yards, TD
NOR – Jim Everett – 18/33, 164 yards, TD, INT

Top rushers

ARI – LeShon Johnson – 21 rushes, 214 yards, 2 TD
NOR – Ray Zellars – 12 rushes, 57 yards

Top receivers

ARI – Rob Moore – 4 receptions, 91 yards, TD
NOR – Ricky Whittle – 4 receptions, 47 yards

Week 5: v St. Louis Rams

Week Five: St. Louis Rams at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Rams	7	14	7	0	0	28
Cardinals	0	14	0	14	3	31

at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona

Date: September 29
Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST/2:00 p.m. MST
Game weather: 83 °F or 28.3 °C, relative humidity 19%, wind 5 miles per hour (8.0 km/h; 4.3 kn)
Game attendance: 33,116
Box score

Game information

First quarter

STL – Eddie Kennison 66-yard punt return (Chip Lohmiller kick), 3:34. Rams 7–0.

Second quarter

STL – Isaac Bruce 46-yard pass from Tony Banks (Chip Lohmiller kick), 15:00. Rams 14–0.
ARI – Rob Moore 24-yard pass from Kent Graham (Greg Davis kick), 12:55. Rams 14–7.
STL – Eddie Kennison 34-yard pass from Tony Banks (Chip Lohmiller kick), 11:57. Rams 21–7.
ARI – LeShon Johnson 2-yard pass from Kent Graham (Greg Davis kick), 8:57. Rams 21–14.

Third quarter

STL – Isaac Bruce 49-yard pass from Tony Banks (Chip Lohmiller kick), 8:49. Rams 28–14.

Fourth quarter

ARI – Larry Centers 5-yard pass from Kent Graham (Greg Davis kick), 3:08. Rams 28–21.
ARI – Frank Sanders 5-yard pass from Kent Graham (Greg Davis kick), 0:19. 28–28.

Overtime

ARI – Greg Davis 24-yard field goal, 3:49. Cardinals 31–28.

Top passers

STL – Tony Banks – 10/17, 186 yards, INT, 3 TD
ARI – Kent Graham – 37/58, 366 yards, 4 TD

Top rushers

STL – Harold Green – 10 rushes, 39 yards
ARI – KeShon Johnson – 12 rushes, 97 yards

Top receivers

STL – Isaac Bruce – 4 receptions, 117 yards, 2 TD
ARI – Rob Moore – 9 receptions, 143 yards, 1 TD

Week 7: at Dallas Cowboys

Week Seven: Arizona Cardinals at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Cardinals	0	0	0	3	3
Cowboys	0	3	7	7	17

at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas

Date: October 13
Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST/2:00 p.m. MST
Game weather: 71 °F or 21.7 °C, relative humidity 56%, wind 13 miles per hour (21 km/h; 11 kn)
Game attendance: 64,096
Box score

Game information

First quarter

No scoring plays

Second quarter

DAL – Chris Boniol 23-yard field goal, 5:24. Cowboys 3–0.

Third quarter

DAL – Emmitt Smith 3-yard rush (Chris Boniol kick), 1:29. Cowboys 10–0.

Fourth quarter

ARI – Greg Davis 49-yard field goal, 5:49. Cowboys 10–3.
DAL – Emmitt Smith 13 yard rush (Chris Boniol kick), 2:03. Cowboys 17–3.

Top passers

ARI – Kent Graham – 16/31, 141 yards
DAL – Troy Aikman – 23/37, 199 yards, 1 INT

Top rushers

ARI – Larry Centers – 5 rushes, 24 yards
DAL – Emmitt Smith – 21 rushes, 112 yards, 2 TD

Top receivers

ARI – Rob Moore – 3 receptions, 45 yards
DAL – Michael Irvin – 10 receptions, 51 yards

Week 8: v Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week Eight: Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Buccaneers	0	0	3	6	9
Cardinals	3	7	3	0	13

at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona

Date: October 20
Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST/2:00 p.m. MST
Game weather: 73 °F or 22.8 °C, relative humidity 31%, wind 13 miles per hour (21 km/h; 11 kn)
Game attendance: 27,738
Box score

Game information

First quarter

ARI – Greg Davis 22-yard field goal, 6:20. Cardinals 3–0.

Second quarter

ARI – Larry Centers 5-yard pass from Kent Graham (Greg Davis kick), 10:24. Cardinals 10–0.

Third quarter

TAM – Michael Husted 41-yard field goal, 8:28. Cardinals 10–3.
ARI – Greg Davis 37-yard field goal, 2:07. Cardinals 13–3.

Fourth quarter

TAM – Mike Alstott 1-yard rush, 7:34 (Michael Husted kick failed). Cardinals 13–9.

Top passers

TAM – Trent Dilfer – 22/35, 229 yards
ARI – Kent Graham – 17/26, 146 yards, 1 TD

Top rushers

TAM – Reggie Brooks – 14 rushes, 43 yards
ARI – Kent Graham – 5 rushes, 40 yards

Top receivers

TAM – Courtney Hawkins – 10 receptions, 74 yards
ARI – Frank Sanders – 4 receptions, 40 yards

Week 9: v New York Jets

Week Nine: New York Jets at Arizona Cardinals – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Jets	3	14	0	14	31
Cardinals	0	0	14	7	21

at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona

Date: October 6
Game time: 4:00 p.m. EST/2:00 p.m. MST
Game weather: 53 °F or 11.7 °C, relative humidity 60%, wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)
Game attendance: 28,088
Box score

Game information

First quarter

NYJ – Nick Lowery 37-yard field goal, 2:47. Jets 3–0.

Second quarter

NYJ – Keyshawn Johnson 34-yard pass from Frank Reich (Nick Lowery kick), 14:53. Jets 10–0.
NYJ – Richie Anderson 1-yard run (Nick Lowery kick), 0:16. Jets 17–0.

Third quarter

ARI – Larry Centers 1-yard pass from Kent Graham (Greg Davis kick), 7:35. Jets 17–7.
ARI – Larry Centers 2-yard pass from Kent Graham (Greg Davis kick), 5:47. Jets 17–14.

Fourth quarter

NYJ – Adrian Murrell 1-yard run (Nick Lowery kick), 12:51. Jets 24–14.
ARI – Rob Moore 6-yard pass from Kent Graham (Greg Davis kick), 11:47. Jets 24–21.
NYJ – Reggie Cobb 2-yard run (Nick Lowery kick), 4:55. Jets 31–21.

Top passers

NYJ – Frank Reich – 22/31, 254 yards, TD, 2 INT
ARI – Kent Graham – 17/32, 255 yards, 3 TD, INT

Top rushers

NYJ – Adrian Murrell – 31 rushes, 199 yards, TD
ARI – LeShon Johnson – 12 rushes, 85 yards

Top receivers

NYJ – Keyshawn Johnson – 7 receptions, 94 yards, TD
ARI – Rob Moore – 7 receptions, 143 yards, TD

Standings

NFC East
	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
⁽³⁾ Dallas Cowboys	10	6	0	.625	286	250	L1
⁽⁵⁾ Philadelphia Eagles	10	6	0	.625	363	341	W2
Washington Redskins	9	7	0	.563	364	312	W1
Arizona Cardinals	7	9	0	.438	300	397	L1
New York Giants	6	10	0	.375	242	297	L2

References

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[1] 1996 Arizona Cardinals

[2] Arizona Cardinals v New York Jets

[3] History of the NFL’s Structure and Formats

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 Mountain America Stadium State Farm Stadium
Culture	Chris O'Brien Charles Bidwill Bill Bidwill Red Sea 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 (former) Los Angeles Rams San Francisco 49ers Seattle Seahawks
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

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 2022 2023
Bold indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl victory Italics indicates NFL Championship or Super Bowl appearance