NFL Schedule Released: See Key Arizona Cardinals Games In 2022

TEMPE, AZ —The NFL released its 2022 schedule on Thursday night, and it appears league executives think America wants to see more of Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals.

The Cardinals will play four prime-time national television games for the first time since 2016, including facing Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in an NBC Sunday Night Football game on Christmas Eve (Week 16).

Arizona also will host the New Orleans Saints in an Oct. 20 (Week 7) Thursday Night Football game, face the San Francisco 49ers in a Dec. 12 (Week 11) Monday Night Football game at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, and will host the New England Patriots in a Dec. 12 (Week 14) Sunday Night Football game.

Though many of these prime-time matchups fall later in the season, the Cardinals hardly will get the luxury of easing into the campaign.

Arizona will open the season on Sept. 11 at home against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, and then host the Super Bowl Champion Los Angeles Rams on Sept. 25 (Week 3).

After the schedule announcement, Nick Shook of NFL.com ranked the Cardinals as having the second most difficult schedule in the league behind the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Cardinals also will have to play their first six games without standout wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, who was suspended after testing positive for a banned performance-enhancing substance.

Hopkins' absence, and the departure of pass-catcher Christian Kirk, will mean Murray and wide receiver Marquise "Hollywood" Brown —acquired last month from the Baltimore Ravens —will need to quickly re-establish the pass-catching connection they had as teammates at the University of Oklahoma.

A key for the Cardinals will be consistency. In each of the previous two seasons, Arizona has started strong before tailing off during the second half of the campaign.

In 2020, the Cardinals opened the season 5-2, but went 3-6 down the stretch. Last fall, Arizona won its first seven games, and it had a 10-2 record before limping into the playoffs with one win in its final five games.

The Rams then beat the Cardinals 34-11 in the NFC Wild-Card Round.

The season appears to be full of challenges for Arizona, which must overcome the absence of Hopkins and the departures of Kirk and defensive end Chandler Jones, who signed with the Raiders, all while navigating one of the league's toughest schedules.

But if the Cardinals need a little extra motivation, it could come from the fact that State Farm Stadium will be hosting Super Bowl LVII on Feb. 12, 2023.

While none of the first 54 Super Bowls included a team playing in its home stadium, the last two years have featured both the Buccaneers and the Rams playing at home. Can the Cardinals make it three home teams in a row?

Here's the Cardinals 2022 schedule:

Preseason

• TBD, Cincinnati Bengals, Away, TBD, TBD
• Aug. 21, Baltimore Ravens Home, 5 p.m. MST, TBD
• TBD, Tennessee Titans, Away, TBD, TBD

Regular Season

• Sept. 11, Kansas City Chiefs, Home, 1:25 p.m. MST, CBS
• Sept. 18, Las Vegas Raiders, Away, 1:25 p.m. MST, CBS
• Sept. 25, Los Angeles Rams, Home, 1:25 p.m. MST, Fox
• Oct. 2, Carolina Panthers, Away, 1:05 p.m. MST., Fox
• Oct 9, Philadelphia Eagles, Home, 1:25 p.m. MST., Fox
• Oct 16, Seattle Seahawks, Away, 1:05 p.m. MST, Fox
• Oct 20, New Orleans Saints, Home, 5:15 p.m. MST, Prime
• Oct. 30, Minnesota Vikings, Away, 10 a.m. MST, Fox
• Nov. 6, Seattle Seahawks, Home, 2:05 p.m. MST, Fox
• Nov. 13, Los Angeles Rams, Away 2:25 p.m. MST, FOX
• Nov. 21, San Francisco 49ers, Mexico City, 6:15 p.m. MST, ESPN
• Nov. 27, Los Angeles Chargers, Home, 2:05 p.m. MST, CBS
• Week 13, Bye
• Dec. 12, New England Patriots, Home, 6:15 p.m. MST, ESPN
• Dec. 15, Denver Broncos, Away, 2:05 p.m. MST, Fox
• Dec. 25, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Home, 6:20 pm. MST, NBC
• Jan. 1, Atlanta Falcons, Away, 11 a.m. MST, Fox
• TBD, San Francisco 49ers, Away, TBD, TBD