Hey hey, welcome back — LIIIIIIIIVE from your inbox once again, it’s PHNX WKLY. I hope you missed me as much as I missed you.

That’s right; we’re back, and it’s time to talk some Cardinals football again. Let’s get started.

— Alex D’Agostino, PHNX WKLY Editor

Cardinals, Packers prepare for final preseason showdown

The LaFleur brothers did not throw down at the 50 yard line during their joint practices this week, but their two teams are about to throw down for the final matchup of their 2026 preseason. Real, record-counting football is almost here.

The Cardinals are 1-2 thus far this preseason. They’ve provided fans with some serious, legitimate hope in the form of new head coach Mike LaFleur’s quarterback-friendly scheme.

Arizona’s passers have combined to go 71-for-89 for 721 yards, five touchdowns and just one interception. That’s a passer rating of 114.5. It hasn’t really mattered who’s throwing the ball, either — Jacoby Brissett, Gardner Minshew, Carson Beck or Kedon Slovis. They’ve all been able to spread the ball around and march down the field in relative rhythm.

Even the Cardinals’ rushing attack has been impressive, averaging 4.52 yards per carry and just over 144 yards per game on the ground.

Arizona’s defense, on the other hand, has not looked sharp. They’ve surrendered 1,137 yards of total offense — an average of 379 per game — and can’t seem to make make much of an impact in the sack or turnover columns.

Unfortunately, that’s a continuation of previous concerns surrounding defensive coordinator Nick Rallis and Arizona’s defensive personnel. The group that gave up a franchise-worst 488 points in 2025 has made almost no significant changes, and that is evident by the product on the field this preseason — starters, backups or third-string hopefuls.

For Friday’s game (5:00 p.m. Arizona time), expect a heavy dose of Slovis at QB. Beck is still working his way back from a rib injury. Don’t get your hopes up for any starters, for that matter. The final preseason contest tends to not be much more than a chance for those roster hopefuls to make their final case.

But don’t worry, we’re almost to week one.

Now, let’s take a look at the rest of the recent sports happenings around the Valley:

The Diamondbacks sit 1.5 games back of the final Wild Card berth after a 6-1 loss to the lowly San Francisco Giants last night. They’re expected to get star 2B Ketel Marte back from the IL on Monday, following a drama-filled couple of weeks.
Wildcat Men’s Basketball had a pretty successful tour of Lithuania last week. Tommy Lloyd’s guys took down the Ukrainian national team 107-85 last Thursday and the Lithuanian national team 88-74 on Saturday. Their lone loss came against Lithuania’s “B team” last Wednesday. People reacted reasonably to that, as you can imagine.
Phoenix Rising took a 2-2 draw with Sacramento Republic FC last Saturday. They are 6-8-7 and second to last in the standings. It’s been a rough season.
The Mercury are having an even rougher season. They’re 13-26 after blowing a late lead the Washington Mystics, 80-73, last night. They have already been eliminated from playoff contention.