1998: Cards Defeat Rams in Return to St. Louis

The Cardinals moved from St. Louis to Phoenix following the 1987 season after 28 years and, now called the Arizona Cardinals, they returned on September 27, 1998 to play the Rams, who had relocated from Los Angeles to St. Louis in 1995.

The Cards had yet to post a winning record in Arizona and, thus far in 1998, were 1-2 after winning for the first time the previous week. Head Coach Vince Tobin was in his third season at the helm and had a promising second-year quarterback in Jake Plummer (pictured above). There were good wide receivers in Frank Sanders and Rob Moore and RB Adrian Murrell was dependable. CB Aeneas Williams was the top player in a fair defense.

St. Louis was in its second season under Head Coach Dick Vermeil and had not been a winning team since 1989, well before the move from LA. The Rams were also 1-2 and were coming off of a win the week before. QB Tony Banks had all the physical tools but had not produced consistently, and star WR Isaac Bruce was hampered by an injury. Much was expected from rookie RB Robert Holcombe, the team’s second round draft pick out of Illinois.

There were 55,832 fans in attendance at the Trans World Dome and many of them booed the visiting Cardinals, who were playing their first regular season game in St. Louis since moving. The Rams went three-and-out in their first series and, starting at their 44 yard line following the punt, Jake Plummer threw to TE Johnny McWilliams for 17 yards. Two carries by Adrian Murrell and another short pass advanced the ball to the St. Louis 31, but Joe Nedney’s 48-yard field goal attempt was unsuccessful.

The teams traded punts before St.Louis put together a scoring drive. With Robert Holcombe carrying six times for 30 yards and Tony Banks running for 19 and completing two passes, the Rams went 68 yards in nine plays capped by Holcombe running five yards for a touchdown. Jeff Wilkins added the extra point to make it 7-0.

The Cardinals responded with a series that extended into the second quarter. Plummer connected on four passes, two of them to Frank Sanders (pictured at left) for 11 and 19 yards and the longest to Rob Moore for 25 yards to the St. Louis 11. The 72-yard drive ended with Nedney booting a 22-yard field goal.

The Rams again moved well on their next possession, with Holcombe running effectively and Banks successful on three passes, including one to WR Ricky Proehl that picked up 16 yards to the Arizona 41. However, the drive stalled at the 27 and Wilkins missed a 45-yard try for a field goal.

Arizona responded by going 65 yards in 11 plays. Plummer completed four passes, converting a third-and-eight situation with a toss to Moore for 12 yards and scoring a touchdown with a throw to Sanders from 13 yards out. Nedney converted and the visitors were ahead for the first time by 10-7.

On their next series, the Cards got a big gain right away when Plummer threw to WR Eric Metcalf for 29 yards. Two penalties on the Rams helped the drive along and Murrell ran for a four-yard TD, with Nedney adding the extra point to give Arizona a ten-point lead.

St. Louis got the ball back with a minute remaining in the period and moved down the field, the biggest plays being Banks passes to RB Amp Lee for 23 yards and to Proehl for 13. On the final play of the first half, Wilkins kicked a 57-yard field goal and the score stood at 17-10 in favor of the Cardinals at the intermission.

The teams exchanged punts through a scoreless third quarter. The Cardinals reached the St. Louis 33 early in the final period but FS Keith Lyle intercepted a Plummer pass to end the threat. While the Rams weren’t able to move the ball and punted, they got a break on the Cards’ ensuing punt when they were penalized for interfering with the fair catch and St. Louis started in Arizona territory at the 46. The Rams struck quickly as Banks threw to WR J.T. Thomas for 42 yards and Holcombe ran around right end for a four-yard touchdown. Wilkins converted to tie the score at 17-17 with 9:52 to play in regulation.

The Cardinals, starting the next series at their 14, drove to their 37 before facing a third-and-14 situation, but a pass interference penalty on CB Dexter McCleon picked up 43 yards to the St. Louis 20 and, four plays later, Nedney kicked a 29-yard field goal to put the visitors back in front by three. The Rams had one last chance but went three-and-out, punted, and the Cardinals were able to control the ball and run out the clock. They came away winners by a final score of 20-17.  

Arizona had the edge in total yards (281 to 264) and first downs (22 to 17). The Cardinals also recorded four sacks (two by DE Andre Wadsworth) to one by St. Louis, but also suffered the only turnover of the game. The Rams hurt themselves with 10 penalties at a cost of 138 yards, with the big pass interference calls the most damaging of all, while five flags were thrown on the Cards.

Jake Plummer completed 21 of 31 passes for 211 yards and a touchdown while giving up one interception. Frank Sanders had 9 catches for 86 yards and a TD and Adrian Murrell rushed for 68 yards on 29 carries, one of which was for a score.

For the Rams, Robert Holcombe (pictured at right) was the star on offense as he gained 84 yards on 21 rushing attempts that included two touchdowns. Tony Banks was successful on 15 of 26 throws for 171 yards with no TDs or interceptions. Amp Lee topped the receivers with 5 catches for 53 yards.

“It’s great to be 2-2 after an 0-2 start,” said Coach Tobin of the Cardinals, who gave owner Bill Bidwill the game ball. “We haven’t been 2-2 since I’ve been here.”

Arizona lost to the Raiders the next week and hung around .500 until winning the last three games of the season, placing second in the NFC East and qualifying for a Wild Card playoff spot. The Cardinals defeated the Cowboys in the first round, the franchise’s first postseason win since they were the Chicago Cardinals in 1947, but lost to the Vikings in the Divisional game.

For the Rams, the loss to the Cardinals was the eighth consecutive at home on the way to a 4-12 last place finish in the NFC West, although a stunning turnaround was in the offing for 1999.

Jake Plummer was a big part of the late-season surge for the Cardinals as he passed for 3737 yards and 17 touchdowns. Frank Sanders caught 89 passes for 1145 yards (12.9 avg.) and three TDs.

Robert Holcombe’s early promise did not pan out as he ran for just 230 yards on 98 carries (2.3 avg.). The two touchdowns against the Cards were his total output for the year. With the arrival of Marshall Faulk, he was shifted to fullback in 1999 and lasted a total of four years in St. Louis before moving on to Tennessee, never gaining more than 294 rushing yards in a season.

1997: Bucs Edge Cards with Big Plays on Defense and Special Teams

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were 4-0 and looking to match the best start in franchise history as they hosted the Arizona Cardinals on September 28, 1997. The team that had been a perennial doormat since last posting a winning record during the strike-shortened 1982 season was beginning to come together in its second year under Head Coach Tony Dungy. The defense, featuring DT Warren Sapp, CB Donnie Abraham, and linebackers Derrick Brooks and Hardy Nickerson, was the key to the team’s improvement, while the offense was benefiting from the play of rookies RB Warrick Dunn and WR Reidel Anthony, second-year FB Mike Alstott, and much-improved fourth-year QB Trent Dilfer (pictured above).

The Cardinals, under Head Coach Vince Tobin, were 1-2 and coming off a bye week. They had hurt themselves with fumbles in their previous losses to the Bengals and Redskins, and all three of their contests had been close. Arizona had fine wide receivers in Rob Moore and Frank Sanders, but QB Kent Graham was no better than average and, while FB Larry Centers was an outstanding receiver out of the backfield, the running game was not strong. The defensive line, anchored by DT Eric Swann, was tough and CB Aeneas Williams was an established star.

There were 53,804 fans in attendance at Houlihan’s Stadium. The teams traded punts to start the game. Arizona’s second possession stalled and Jeff Feagles was again called on to punt with the line of scrimmage at his 40. However, the kick was blocked and recovered by LB Alshermond Singleton at the Arizona 28, and he took it the rest of the way for a touchdown. Michael Husted missed the extra point attempt and the score remained 6-0 in favor of the Buccaneers.

The teams again traded punts as the Buccaneers were unable to get anything going on offense and the Cards were little better. They had the ball as the first quarter ended and, on the first play of the second quarter, faced a fourth-and-one situation at their own 41. Lining up for an apparent punt, LB Ronald McKinnon took the short snap and ran three yards for a first down. Kent Graham completed two passes for 16 yards but the drive stalled at the Tampa Bay 37. Once again the Cards attempted trickery as they lined up for a field goal try but then shifted to go for a quick running play instead. Eric Swann took the snap but fumbled and DE Marcus Jones recovered for the Bucs.

It didn’t appear to be any more promising for Tampa Bay’s offense when the first play had to be aborted as Trent Dilfer fumbled and, while Warrick Dunn recovered, it was at a cost of ten yards. Two more plays had the Buccaneers facing fourth-and-16 and having to kick the ball away, but now it was their turn for a fake and punter Tommy Barnhardt completed a pass to safety Tony Bouie for a 25-yard gain. The offense came alive and Dilfer completed three passes, interspersed with runs by Dunn and Mike Alstott, with the third completion going to Reidel Anthony for an eight-yard touchdown. The Bucs tried for two points, but Alstott’s run up the middle was stopped short. Still, the home team held a 12-0 lead.

The Cards responded by going 80 yards in eight plays. They converted two third downs, first when Graham threw to Rob Moore (pictured at left) for 28 yards in a third-and-seven situation and then to WR Anthony Edwards for six yards on a third-and-five play to the Tampa Bay 21. On the next play, and following the two-minute warning, Graham connected with Moore for a TD. Kevin Butler added the extra point and the score was 12-7 at the half.

The Bucs went three-and-out to start the third quarter and Arizona again put points on the board. Following a holding penalty that backed them up to their 12, the Cards picked up 41 yards on a Graham-to-Moore pass play. A third-and-nine pass to Edwards gained 10 yards to the Tampa Bay 36 and Graham then threw to WR Kevin Williams for another 12 yards. The 10-play, 61-yard series finally ended with Butler kicking a 37-yard field goal that narrowed Tampa Bay’s lead to 12-10.

Once more the teams traded punts but, with less than two minutes remaining in the period, the Cardinals got a big play on defense as Aeneas Williams intercepted a Dilfer pass and returned it 42 yards for a touchdown. They added two points on a Graham pass to Frank Sanders and the visitors were in front by 18-12 heading into the fourth quarter.

The Bucs had a short series on offense followed by Arizona starting off with good field position at midfield following a 17-yard punt return by Kevin Williams. A pass to Moore gained 22 yards and carries by running backs LeShon Johnson and Leeland McElroy picked up 12 more. But Graham was sacked for a 10-yard loss and the drive stalled at the 25 from where Butler was wide on a 43-yard field goal attempt.

The Bucs again went three-and-out on the next series but, after Barnhardt’s 57-yard punt pinned the Cardinals back at their five, the defense came through with a big play when SS John Lynch picked off an overthrown Graham pass at the Arizona 35. Four plays later, and facing fourth-and-six, Dilfer completed a pass to WR Karl Williams for a 31-yard touchdown. Husted’s key extra point put Tampa Bay back in front by a point.

With less than five minutes remaining, Graham went to the air often but the Cards were unable to get out of their end of the field and had to punt. The Buccaneers, playing conservative, ran three plays and punted with Barnhardt’s booming kick going 57 yards and putting the visitors back at their 20 with 46 seconds remaining on the clock. Graham completed three passes, the big one to Sanders for a 37-yard gain to the Tampa Bay 29, but the game ended with Butler missing a 47-yard field goal attempt. The Buccaneers came away with a hard-fought 19-18 win.

Tampa Bay came out on top despite low offensive output. The Cards dominated in total yards (364 to 167) and first downs (23 to 6). But the Buccaneers registered six sacks, to three by Arizona, and the Cardinals turned the ball over three times, to one by Tampa Bay. The Bucs also benefited from touchdowns by the special teams and defense.

Trent Dilfer completed 12 of 24 passes for 110 yards, but two of them were good for touchdowns as opposed to one interception. Reidel Anthony had 5 catches for 49 yards and a TD. Warrick Dunn and Mike Alstott were held to 27 yards apiece, on 10 and 8 carries, respectively. However, Tommy Barnhardt (pictured at right) had an outstanding game, averaging 49.4 yards on eight punts, with two stopping inside the five yard line and had the pass completion for 25 yards on the fake. DT Brad Culpepper accounted for three sacks.

For the Cardinals, Kent Graham went to the air a season-high 52 times and was successful on 31 for 339 yards and a TD, but also had two intercepted with one of them directly resulting in a Tampa Bay score. Rob Moore caught 8 of those passes for 147 yards and a touchdown while FB Larry Centers also had 8 receptions for 58 yards in addition to his four carries for four yards. Leeland McElroy ran for 40 yards on 13 attempts.

“I wouldn’t say we were lucky, I’d say we hung in there, persevered,” said Tony Dungy on behalf of the Buccaneers. “You’ve got to win some games when you’re not playing well.”

“We’ve lost so many games like this in the past,” echoed John Lynch. “It’s hard work and preparation and believing you can win. You don’t just get lucky at this. You get lucky for a reason.”

After matching the 5-0 start of the 1979 team, the Buccaneers lost the next three games but came back to finish at 10-6 and second in the NFC Central. Qualifying for a Wild Card playoff spot, they beat Detroit in the first round but lost to the division-champion Packers in the Divisional round. Arizona continued to struggle, ending up at the bottom of the NFC East with a 4-12 record.

Trent Dilfer went to the Pro Bowl after passing for 2555 yards and 21 touchdowns with just 11 interceptions. Warrick Dunn (1440 yards from scrimmage) and Mike Alstott (665 rushing yards) were selected as well. Tommy Barnhardt averaged 45.0 yards on his 29 punts before a broken collar bone in the sixth game cost him the remainder of the season.

Kent Graham also went down with an injury and gave way to rookie QB Jake Plummer. In eight games, Graham completed just 52 percent of his passes for 1408 yards and four TDs with five intercepted.  Rob Moore continued to excel and was a consensus first-team All-NFL as well as Pro Bowl selection as he caught 97 passes for a league-leading 1584 yards and eight touchdowns. 

1999: Cardinals Beat Cowboys for First Postseason Win Since ‘47

The Cardinals are the oldest NFL franchise, but not the most successful. Formed as the Morgan Athletic Club in Chicago in 1899, they were named the Racine Cardinals in 1901 (for the street where their playing field was located) thanks to the purchase of some faded maroon jerseys that were declared to be “cardinal red”. The team was a charter member of what became the NFL in 1920 and became known as the Chicago Cardinals. They won a championship in 1925, before there was such a thing as a postseason, and they defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1947 title game. But since that game, with moves to St. Louis and Phoenix (where they were first known as the Phoenix Cardinals before regionalizing the name to Arizona) along the way, they had appeared in four playoff games, losing all of them.

On January 2, 1999 the Cardinals appeared in an NFC Wild Card playoff against the Dallas Cowboys at Texas Stadium. Arizona had finished the 1998 season with a 9-7 record, putting them a game behind the division-winning Cowboys in the NFC East and qualifying them for the postseason for the first time since 1982. Under Head Coach Vince Tobin, the Cards boasted some young talent, starting with QB Jake “the Snake” Plummer (pictured above). WR Frank Sanders led the conference in pass receptions with 89, and along with WR Rob Moore provided a solid receiving tandem. RB Adrian Murrell ran for over a thousand yards (1042) and FB Larry Centers was an excellent receiver out of the backfield. The defensive line, which included DE Simeon Rice and the talented but oft-injured DT Eric Swann, was good and the secondary anchored by CB Aeneas Williams had talent.

Dallas had been as visible in the postseason over the course of over thirty seasons as the Cardinals hadn’t been. Most recently, they had won three Super Bowls in four seasons (1992-93, ’95) and had missed the playoffs for the first time since 1990 the previous year. But they had bounced back in ’98 under new Head Coach Chan Gailey to win the division at 10-6. They depended on their veteran nucleus of QB Troy Aikman, RB Emmitt Smith, and WR Michael Irvin on offense and DT Leon Lett , CB Deion Sanders (who missed several games with a toe injury), and SS Darren Woodson on defense.

The Cowboys had dominated the Cardinals in recent play, beating them in the nine previous games at Texas Stadium and 16 of 17 overall, including both meetings during the ’98 season.


The Cardinals made a big play in their second possession of the game as Plummer threw to Frank Sanders for 59 yards, setting up a 12-yard score on a shovel pass to Murrell. There was no further scoring until 19 seconds before the end of the half, as Chris Jacke kicked a 37-yard field goal to put the Cardinals up by a 10-0 score. Dallas had twice come close to getting on the scoreboard, but Richie Cunningham missed a 37-yard field goal attempt and, with a fourth-and-one situation on the Arizona nine yard line, Emmitt Smith was stopped for no gain.

Early in the second half, Murrell took off on a 74-yard run that set up a three-yard TD pass from Plummer to Centers. After Jacke kicked a 46-yard field goal in the fourth quarter, the score was 20-0 before Dallas finally scored on a six-yard pass from Aikman to WR Billy Davis after Deion Sanders had returned a punt 41 yards. It was too little, too late, with only 3:33 remaining in the game. The final score was 20-7 as Arizona came up a winner in the postseason for the first time in over 50 years.

Jake Plummer showed poise under pressure, completing 19 of 36 passes for 213 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Adrian Murrell (pictured below) led all runners with 95 yards on 12 carries. Rob Moore led the team with five pass receptions, for 41 yards, while Frank Sanders (pictured above left) gained the most yards (72) on his three catches.

For the Cowboys, Troy Aikman went to the air 49 times and completed 22 for 191 yards and a TD, but with three interceptions. Emmitt Smith had an ordinary game (for him) with 74 yards on 16 rushing attempts. WR Patrick Jeffers was the most productive receiver with 7 catches for 92 yards.

It was a frustrating day for Aikman, who said afterward, “It’s not the outcome we were expecting. They just clamped down on us.” Coach Gailey echoed the sentiment, saying “Arizona made big plays, and we didn’t. The defense hung in there, but we had too many dropped passes and penalties to hurt them on offense.”

On the other side, a happy Larry Centers said about winning at Texas Stadium, “This has been a house of horrors for us. This is great to finally get it off our back."

The win didn’t foreshadow a turnaround for the franchise, however – the Cardinals lost decisively the next week in the divisional playoff game against Minnesota, 41-21. Jake Plummer would ultimately prove too erratic to consistently lift the offense, the team fell back to 6-10 the next season, and Vince Tobin would be gone before the 2000 campaign was concluded. Arizona did not return to the playoffs again until the 2008 season.

The game did signal a period of decline for the Cowboys, who just made the postseason as a wild card entry with an 8-8 record in 1999 before missing out altogether the next three years.

1996: Arizona’s Boomer Esiason Passes for 522 Yards in Wild Win Over Redskins

Boomer Esiason spent one of his 14 seasons in the NFL with the Arizona Cardinals, and for the most part it confirmed that, at age 35, his best years were behind him. The skills that had made him one of the league’s better quarterbacks in his prime had eroded, and he found himself in competition with journeyman Kent Graham for the starting job.

However, on November 10, 1996 he was in top form as the Cardinals took on the Washington Redskins at RFK Stadium in a Week 11 matchup. Arizona, at 3-6, was struggling under new Head Coach Vince Tobin, while the Redskins were 7-2, having reeled off seven consecutive wins after an opening day defeat before losing badly at Buffalo the previous week.

The first quarter passed quietly as the teams traded field goals. Washington RB Marc Logan scored the initial touchdown of the game in the second quarter on a 36-yard run, but the Cardinals scored the next ten points thanks to a 39-yard field goal by Kevin Butler and a 64-yard TD pass from Esiason to WR Marcus Dowdell. Scott Blanton kicked a 24-yard field goal and the score was tied at the half, 13-13.

Washington twice led by 14 points in the second half, scoring two touchdowns in the third quarter for a 27-13 margin and, after Cardinals FB Larry Centers scored from a yard out, by 34-20 when RB Terry Allen responded with a short TD run of his own. But in the fourth quarter, Boomer Esiason put on a phenomenal passing display. He threw TD passes of 13 yards to TE Johnny McWilliams and 12 yards to WR Anthony Edwards that knotted the score at 34-34 and forced the game into overtime, but that told only part of the story; in the fourth quarter and overtime periods alone he completed 23 of 35 passes for 351 yards and the two touchdowns.

The overtime period was certainly gut-wrenching for both teams. The Cardinals won the toss and Esiason drove the team to the Washington 15 yard line, but Butler missed a 32-yard field goal attempt. The Redskins were unable to capitalize and Arizona got the ball back, but a fumble turned the ball back over to Washington. It seemed as though the Redskins had won the game when Blanton kicked an apparent 38-yard field goal, but a holding call nullified the attempt and Blanton missed the ensuing follow-up kick from 48 yards.

With time running down in the overtime period, the Cardinals made it to the Washington 19 yard line and Kevin Butler again attempted a game-winning field goal, only to have it hit the left upright and bounce away. However, safety Darryl Morrison of the Redskins was flagged for being offside, and Butler finally ended the contest with a 32-yard field goal with only seconds remaining in the extra period.

Arizona accumulated 615 yards of total offense – the most ever surrendered in a game by the Redskins – in pulling out the 37-34 win. Most of it was accounted for by Boomer Esiason, who for the day completed 35 of 59 passes for 522 yards and three touchdowns, with four interceptions; the yardage total was the third highest ever attained by an NFL quarterback.

Larry Centers and WR Frank Sanders both caught six passes apiece, and Marcus Dowdell, who had scored on the first TD pass, had the most yards among the receivers with 92 on three receptions; WR Rob Moore was right behind with 91 yards, also on three catches. The efforts of Washington RB Terry Allen, who carried the ball 31 times for 124 yards and two scores, were overshadowed by Esiason’s heroics.

The Cardinals won their next two games and finished at 7-9, in fourth place in the NFC East. Washington lost four of the remaining six games to end up with a 9-7 record and third place in the division. When the two teams met again for the rematch in Phoenix, Arizona won again, although with Kent Graham at quarterback (accumulating far fewer passing yards).

For Boomer Esiason, the outstanding game at Washington was the high point of an ultimately disappointing season. The team went 3-5 in games he started, and competing with Graham did not sit well. When Coach Tobin designated Graham to be the starting quarterback for 1997, Esiason demanded to be released from the second year of his contract and returned to the team he had started with, the Cincinnati Bengals, for his final season.