Working our way through previewing the Dallas Cowboys 2026 schedule, it is time to look at the Arizona Cardinals. Starting with the Baltimore Ravens, who the Cowboys will play internationally in Brazil, and moving on to the Cardinals is much more than just a bird to bird transition (leaving the Seahawks and Eagles still waiting). It is also another matchup where second-year Dallas head coach Brian Schottenheimer will be pitted against a 2026 first-year head coach, like Jesse Minter for Baltimore.
That coach will be Mike LaFleur, looking to continue the Cardinals’ strong recent success against the Cowboys.
The Cardinals have a franchise-long 36-56-1 record against the Cowboys, but they have won four straight in this series dating back to 2020 and eight of nine going farther back to 2008. The last Cowboys win against the Cardinals was week three of 2017 in Arizona, meaning they’ll be looking for their first win against them in Arlington since a 2005 game featuring Drew Bledsoe versus Josh McCown at quarterback.
Getting a shot at the Cardinals for a second year in a row after the 2025 defense was embarrassed by Jacoby Brissett in a week nine Monday Night Football meeting will be an important measuring stick for Christian Parker’s defense. This new defense will have to have answers to old faces in the Cardinals lineup like Marvin Harrison Jr. and Trey McBride who both caught touchdowns from Brissett in this game last year, but also third overall pick Jeremiyah Love at running back.
What the Cowboys can prove against the Cardinals in 2026, runs much deeper than just a tightened up defense though. As ridiculous as it feels to say about playing against a team that just picked in the top five for the second time in three years, ending the losing streak to the Cardinals will also be a test of the culture Schottenheimer has put in place. They will be a team desperate to show they have the competitive edge to match the raw talent on the roster against a team where talented rosters have gone to waste countless times in recent history.
Let’s take a closer look at the Cardinals team that will be making the trip to Jerryworld for the second time in as many seasons, the first instance of this happening for the Cardinals playing at the Cowboys since 2000-01, when both teams were in the NFC East.
Cardinals Key Free Agent Signings/Departures
* SIGNED IN FREE AGENCY
- RB Tyler Allgeier
- DT Andrew Billings
- WR Kendrick Bourne
- WR Devin Duvernay
- QB Gardner Minshew
- SAF Andrew Wingard
- OL Isaac Seumalo
- OL Matt Pryor
- OL Elijah Wilkinson
* DEPARTED IN FREE AGENCY
- SAF Jalen Thompson (Cowboys)
- QB Kyler Murray
- DL Dalvin Tomlinson
- DL Calais Campbell
- WR Greg Dortch
The Cardinals are in the midst of a serious offensive line rebuild, paired with yet another quarterback change with Kyler Murray now in Minnesota. Seumalo, Pryor, and Wilkinson all project as potential new starters brought in to join second-round pick Chase Bisontis and form the line the Cardinals can build around Jeremiyah Love at running back. The Cardinals drew a lot of skepticism for using this third overall pick on Love, but won’t have to look any further than Cowboys fans when it comes to underestimating the immediate impact a dynamic back behind a talented offensive line can make. The Cardinals also adding an experienced back like Allgeier to pair with Love, while also having James Conner, Trey Benson, and Bam Knight still rostered, gives them an impressive amount of options and versatility out of the backfield.
In the secondary, the Cardinals maintained depth with Will Johnson, Budda Baker, and Sean Murphy-Bunting, but will play against their former safety Jalen Thompson now with the Cowboys when they come to AT&T Stadium.
Having an answer at quarterback has to be part of this equation for Arizona though, and right now their depth chart at the most important position in the game is unclear. Brissett is still in place after starting 12 games last season, Minshew is another veteran option with starting experience, and the team drafted Carson Beck out of Miami with the first pick of the third round – which brings us to the rest of the Cardinals draft.
Cardinals 2026 Draft Class
- Round 1, Pick 3: RB Jeremiyah Love
- Round 2, Pick 2 (34 Overall): OL Chase Bisontis
- Round 3, Pick 1 (65th Overall): QB Carson Beck
- Round 4, Pick 4 (104 Overall): DT Kaleb Proctor
- Round 5, Pick 3 (143 Overall): WR Reggie Virgil
- Round 6, Pick 2 (183 Overall): LB Karson Sharar
- Round 7, Pick 1 (217 Overall): OT Jayden Williams
The Cardinals draft class for their fourth new head coach since 2018 tells a bit of a conflicting story. Taking a running back in the top five broadcasts a sense of urgency to the rest of the league, but in a division with the reigning Super Bowl champion Seahawks and two other playoff teams from a year ago in the Rams and 49ers, this signal may not be fully received by the Cardinals rivals just yet. The rest of their draft class is an indicator of this too, as they went for prospects with lower floors but potentially high athletic ceilings, and possibly found a QB of the future but not the present with Beck.
Arizona did keep continuity on the defensive coaching staff with Nick Rallis returning as coordinator, so landing Kaleb Proctor outside of the top 100 and a reliable Iowa linebacker in Sharar in the sixth round is solid work for a front seven that was pushed around too much in 2025, but should be able to play faster and more physical in 2026.
What other coaching staff changes have the Cardinals made this offseason? Let’s look at that next.
Cardinals 2026 Coaching Changes
* New to staff this season:
- Head Coach Mike LaFleur
- Offensive Coordinator Nate Hackett
- Quarterbacks Matt Schaub
- Running Backs Matt Merritt
- Wide Receivers Tony Sorrentino
- Tight Ends Jake Morland
- Defensive Line Pete Kwiatkowski
- Cornerbacks Zac Etheridge
- Inside Linebackers Rod Wilson
- Special Teams Coordinator Michael Ghobrial
The Cardinals being behind the curve on trends in modern football may not come as shocking or anything too new. After all, they own the record for fewest playoff appearances relative to years in existence of any professional sports franchise in the US. With that said, they’ve gone to the Sean McVay/Kyle Shanahan coaching tree for 2026, hiring a near NFC West lifer in Mike LaFleur.
LaFleur got his start in the NFL with the Browns while Kyle Shanahan was offensive coordinator there, then followed Shanahan to both the Falcons and the 49ers, was briefly with the Jets, and then ended up out West again with McVay and the Rams. This division in the last several years has been known for coaches and players that know each other incredibly well, giving the interdivisional games something of a college rivalry feel. Even though the Cardinals yet again have the newest head coach of this group, they’ll have a fair case that LaFleur keeps them competitive in this area.
Around the offensive-minded LaFleur is more veteran experience at OC and QB coach with Nate Hackett and Matt Schaub. The Cardinals also retained defensive coordinator Nick Rallis, but do have new position coaches on all three levels of his defense, as well as a new special teams coordinator.
How the Cowboys defense stacks up against these Shanahan style offenses has been a question that’s left this team short of real playoff success countless times during postseason appearances under Mike McCarthy or even Jason Garret before that. This question was put on hold last year while all of the Cowboys fanbase was instead asking if the defense could stop the common cold. Unlike with the Ravens matchup, the Cowboys will see all of the other teams from this division in 2026. Considering the games against the defending champs and the Rams will be on the road, the importance of the Cowboys finally getting in the win column at home against the Cardinals is heightened this year.
Doing so while giving themselves a good test defensively against LaFleur’s system, stopping Love out of the backfield, and seeing Schottenheimer have success calling plays against a DC both he and Klayton Adams schemed against last season would all be good signs for Dallas. Equally, the Cardinals will be looking at this game as winnable regardless of where they are in their debut season under LaFleur. The Cowboys will have to be ready going against one of just three non-NFC East teams that comes to AT&T Stadium in 2026 that did not qualify for the playoffs in 2025 – the others being the Tennessee Titans and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
