1988 Phoenix Cardinals season
The first NFL season in Arizona: the Phoenix Cardinals go 7-9 at Sun Devil Stadium.
The 1988 season was the franchise's 69th in the National Football League and its first in Phoenix. Playing as the Phoenix Cardinals under head coach Gene Stallings, the team went 7-9 and finished fourth in the NFC East. It had gone 7-8 in the strike-shortened 1987 season, its last in St. Louis, and the full 16-game schedule added one more loss. The move made the Cardinals the first NFL team to call Arizona home.
Quick Facts
- Team
- Phoenix Cardinals
- Record
- 7–9
- Division place
- 4th NFC East
- Coach
- Gene Stallings
- Owner
- Bill Bidwill
- Stadium
- Sun Devil Stadium
- Playoffs
- Did not qualify
Facts from the source article.
Background
Owner Bill Bidwill announced his intention to move to Arizona on January 15, 1988, and the league's owners approved the relocation from St. Louis to Phoenix on March 15, 1988. The plan was to play temporarily at Arizona State University's Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe while a new stadium was built, but the savings and loan crisis derailed the financing and the Cardinals stayed at Sun Devil Stadium for 18 seasons. The club had missed the playoffs by a single game in its final St. Louis season and spent much of 1988 in contention before fading. Tackle Luis Sharpe, receiver J. T. Smith and special-teamer Ron Wolfley were the Pro Bowl selections.
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