| Team: | Arizona Cardinals |
| Year: | 2011 |
| Record: | 8–8 |
| Division Place: | 2nd NFC West |
| Coach: | Ken Whisenhunt |
| General Manager: | Rod Graves |
| Owner: | Bill Bidwill |
| Stadium: | University of Phoenix Stadium |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers: | Larry Fitzgerald, WR Patrick Peterson, CB Adrian Wilson, SS |
| Uniform: | File:Arizona Cardinals Uniforms 2010-2016.png |
| Next: | 2012 |
| Shortnavlink: | Cardinals seasons |
The 2011 season was the Arizona Cardinals' 92nd in the National Football League (NFL), their 24th in Arizona and their fifth under head coach Ken Whisenhunt. This was going to be the Cardinals first season with new starting quarterback Kevin Kolb, but he was injured and replaced by John Skelton. Despite a 1-6 start the Cardinals managed to win 7 out of 9 games, including a stunning upset against the San Francisco 49ers in week 14. The team improved on their 5–11 record from the 2010 season, but missed the playoffs for a second consecutive season.
The 2011 Cardinals won four overtime games, an NFL record that would later be matched by the 2021 Las Vegas Raiders.[1]
| Pos. | Player | 2010 Team | Contract |
|---|---|---|---|
| G | 5 years, $27.5 million | ||
| LB | 5 years, $25 million | ||
| C | 5 years, $16 million | ||
| TE | 3 years, $5.5 million | ||
| DE | 2 years, $1.9 million | ||
| S | 2 years, $1.7 million | ||
| G | 1 year, $1.7 million | ||
| RB | 1 year, $810,000 | ||
| CB | 1 year, $855,000 | ||
| C | 1 year, $700,000 | ||
| Pos. | Player | 2011 Team |
|---|---|---|
| WR | Kansas City Chiefs | |
| DT | Seattle Seahawks | |
| G | ||
See main article: 2011 NFL draft.
| Draft order | Player name | Position | Height | Weight | College | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round | Choice | Overall | ||||||
| 1 | 5 | 5 | Patrick Peterson | CB | 6'0" | 219 lbs. | LSU | |
| 2 | 6 | 38 | Ryan Williams | RB | 5'9" | 212 lbs. | VT | |
| 3 | 5 | 69 | Rob Housler | TE | 6'5" | 215 lbs. | FAU | |
| 4 | 6 | 103 | Sam Acho | OLB | 6'2" | 262 lbs. | Texas | |
| 5 | 5 | 136 | Anthony Sherman | RB | 5'10" | 242 lbs. | UConn | |
| 6 | 6 | 171 | Quan Sturdivant | ILB | 6'1" | 241 lbs. | UNC | |
| 19 | 184 | David Carter | DE | 6'5" | 297 lbs. | UCLA | ||
| 7 | 46 | 249 | DeMarco Sampson | WR | 6'2" | 204 lbs. | SDSU | |
On July 28, 2011 the Cardinals acquired Kolb from the Philadelphia Eagles for CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and a 2012 2nd-round pick. The next day they signed former Carolina Panthers starting CB Richard Marshall.[3]
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | August 11 | at Oakland Raiders | W 24–18 | 1–0 | O.co Coliseum | Recap | |
| 2 | August 19 | at Green Bay Packers | L 20–28 | 1–1 | Lambeau Field | Recap | |
| 3 | August 27 | San Diego Chargers | L 31–34 | 1–2 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | |
| 4 | September 1 | Denver Broncos | W 26–7 | 2–2 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 11 | Carolina Panthers | W 28–21 | 1–0 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | ||
| 2 | September 18 | at Washington Redskins | L 21–22 | 1–1 | FedExField | Recap | ||
| 3 | September 25 | at Seattle Seahawks | L 10–13 | 1–2 | CenturyLink Field | Recap | ||
| 4 | October 2 | New York Giants | L 27–31 | 1–3 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | ||
| 5 | October 9 | at Minnesota Vikings | L 10–34 | 1–4 | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | Recap | ||
| 6 | Bye | |||||||
| 7 | October 23 | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 20–32 | 1–5 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | ||
| 8 | October 30 | at Baltimore Ravens | L 27–30 | 1–6 | M&T Bank Stadium | Recap | ||
| 9 | November 6 | St. Louis Rams | W 19–13 | 2–6 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | ||
| 10 | November 13 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 21–17 | 3–6 | Lincoln Financial Field | Recap | ||
| 11 | November 20 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 7–23 | 3–7 | Candlestick Park | Recap | ||
| 12 | November 27 | at St. Louis Rams | W 23–20 | 4–7 | Edward Jones Dome | Recap | ||
| 13 | December 4 | Dallas Cowboys | W 19–13 | 5–7 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | ||
| 14 | December 11 | San Francisco 49ers | W 21–19 | 6–7 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | ||
| 15 | December 18 | Cleveland Browns | W 20–17 | 7–7 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | ||
| 16 | December 24 | at Cincinnati Bengals | L 16–23 | 7–8 | Paul Brown Stadium | Recap | ||
| 17 | January 1 | Seattle Seahawks | W 23–20 | 8–8 | University of Phoenix Stadium | Recap | ||
Despite the Cardinals holding a 10-point lead twice in the fourth quarter, the Giants scored three touchdowns in the final frame as Arizona dropped its third straight game and fell to 1–3.
Coming off their bye week, the Cardinals went home for a Week 7 interconference duel with the Pittsburgh Steelers, in a rematch of Super Bowl XLIII. Arizona trailed early in the first quarter as Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger completed a 12-yard touchdown pass to tight end Heath Miller. Pittsburgh would add onto their lead in the second quarter as Roethlisberger completed a 95-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mike Wallace. The Cardinals would answer with a 1-yard touchdown run from running back Alfonso Smith. The Steelers would close out the half with kicker Shaun Suisham getting a 41-yard field goal.
Arizona opened the third quarter with quarterback Kevin Kolb finding running back LaRod Stephens-Howling on a 73-yard touchdown pass, but Pittsburgh struck back with Roethlisberger completing a 4-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders, along with Kolb's intentional grounding penalty in the endzone resulting in a safety. In the fourth quarter, the Steelers continued to pull away with Suisham making a 42-yard and a 39-yard field goal. The Cardinals tried to rally as Kolb found wide receiver Early Doucet on a 2-yard touchdown pass (with a failed two-point conversion), but Pittsburgh held on to preserve the victory.
With the loss, Arizona fell to 1–5.
The Cardinals blew a 21-point first half lead and lost their sixth straight game to fall to 1–6.
The Cardinals snapped their six-game losing streak as rookie Patrick Peterson returned a punt 98 yards for a game-winning touchdown in overtime. With the win, the Cardinals improved to 2–6. The game also featured the Rams' scoring the four points in the third quarter as the got two safeties on consecutive drives. This was first time in NFL history that a team had recorded four points in a quarter.
The Cardinals came back from 12-point halftime deficit to stun the 10–2 49ers. With the win, the Cardinals improved to 6–7.
Head coach Ken Whisenhunt recorded his 43rd win as the Cardinals' head coach, and surpassed Don Coryell to become the winningest head coach in franchise history. Whisenhunt was the all-time leader in wins for Cardinals head coaches until his record was broken by Bruce Arians 5 years later.