👋 GOOD MORNING — Happy Monday! I hope you had an amazing weekend.

Things are really picking up locally in terms of sports getting ready to kick off, but have you been watching any of the Little League World Series / Little League Softball World Series action?

Huge congrats to Johnstown, Pennsylvania, which won the LLSWS yesterday to claim the state’s first Little League Softball World Series since 1978. They were led by an incredible effort from pitcher Reagan Bills, who threw every pitch of the tournament for Pennsylvania, and she did not allow a single earned run. Truly impressive!

The baseball World Series kicks off Wednesday, culminating with the LLWS Championship game on Aug. 24. It’s going to be a fun few weeks.

On to the show!

— Patrick Brown, PHNX Sports Daily Editor

Hang With The Gang!

Join Johnny, Bo, and the PHNX Cardinals Crew with NFL Diehards for the residency night at the Upper Deck! Cardinals Live Podcast starts at 4:30, followed by the NFL season preview at 6pm and the PHNX Staff Fantasy Football Draft at 7pm! All Diehards who attend will receive a free drink ticket for the event!

Takeaways From the Cardinals’ First Preseason Game

Photo credit: Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Did you get your football fix this past weekend?

Don’t worry if you missed it — there’s plenty of football between now and Feb. 8, 2026 — aka Super Bowl LX. Now, this email is running with a disclaimer, because it’s tough to get any sort of gauge during preseason action. Starters are just getting warmed up, while depth-hopefuls are flying around the field as if they were playing with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.

Still, first impressions are important.

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So, what did we learn during Saturday’s 20-17 win over the Chiefs? Let’s dive in to a few local takes, as well as a quick peek at what the national pundits are saying.

Ball Security Issues, but O-Line Impresses

Arizona’s first two possessions left a lot to be desired, though it did get better from there.

Greg Dortch fumbled the opening kickoff away, leading to a Chiefs touchdown two plays later (including a penalty that nullified a play).
Kyler Murray tossed a red zone interception on the Cardinals’ second possession of the game.
Arizona managed just three points on its first four possessions.
Murray finished 7-for-8 with 96 yards, one pick, and no touchdowns. He added two rushes for nine yards, but was never sacked.
Backup QB Jacoby Brissett was 5-for-8 with two touchdowns, and finished with the day’s highest QB rating of 135.9.
Darren Hall and Kitan Crawford each recorded an interception.
Kicker Chad Ryland was a perfect 2-for-2, with a long of 50 yards. He also hit both extra point attempts.
Rookie Will Johnson was flagged for pass interference on the first throw he saw, but did play a solid game after that.

That’s the tale of the tape — but what were the talking heads saying after the win?

NFL.com: Outside of [the interception], Murray finished his day on a positive note, completing 7 of 8 total pass attempts for 96 yards and managing to extract three points from his final drive before retiring to the sideline, and Arizona executed an excellent screen to Emari Demercado for a touchdown late in the first half. Fortunately, it's only the preseason, but Jonathan Gannon received a reminder of how important the details will be for his football team Saturday.

ESPN: Jacoby Brissett showed Saturday why he was the right signing to be Kyler Murray's backup. Brissett threw for 80 yards, including two touchdown passes, on 5-of-8 passing in less than a quarter and didn't look rattled while commanding the offense.

USA Today (CardsWire): While Brissett was hit twice in the first possession he played, the pass protection was good. The Chiefs finished with only one sack and three quarterback hits, meaning the sack Clayton Tune took and the two hits Brissett took in thet three-and-out were the only ones of the game.

My Take: I’m just going to repeat what I said on Friday — Remember, the results mean absolutely nothing. The 0-16 Lions (2008) were unbeaten in the preseason, and oddly enough, so were the 0-16 Browns (2017). Don’t read too much into this at all! Remember, Arizona’s regular season schedule is the fifth-easiest in the NFL (based upon opponent winning percentage last season), and they have the roster (on paper, anyways) to make some noise in the NFC West.

How Sweep it Is: The Diamondbacks outscored the Rockies 25-12 in a three-game sweep over Colorado, their first sweep since taking all three from St. Louis from July 18-20. The D-backs have won six of eight, but now hit the road for seven straight games, beginning in Texas against the Rangers this evening (5:05 pm).

Bad Dream: The Mercury fell 74-66 at home to the Dream yesterday, snapping their three-game winning streak. Alyssa Thomas’ record-breaking triple-double streak was halted at three games, though she still led all scorers with 21 points while chipping in eight rebounds and five assists.

Phoenix now enjoys a few days of rest before resuming its schedule at home on Friday by hosting Las Vegas (7 pm, ion TV), which closes out its four-game home stand.

Not Rising: Rising FC failed to record a shot on target in a 2-0 loss to Lexington SC, and Phoenix is still looking for its first outright win since a 2-1 triumph over Oakland Roots SC back on July 12. Rising FC has one more road game (Saturday at Tampa Bay) before returning home to face Colorado Springs on August 23.

Keep Your Eyes Open: Where will the Sun Devils land in the AP Top-25 poll? Keep your eyes peeled, as those results will be released later today. Remember, Arizona State is ranked No. 11 in the preseason coaches poll, and finished last year ranked No. 7 by the AP.

Add it to the List: Sun Devils tight end Chamon Matayer was named to the Mackey Award Preseason Watch List on Friday, which is presented annually to the nation’s best tight end. Matayer is one of 17 Sun Devils listed on a preseason awards watch list — that’s crazy!

Wildcats, Too: Congrats to Wildcats tight end Keyan Burnett, who was also named to the Mackey Award Preseason Watch List. The senior is one of six Big 12 Conference tight ends to be honored with a spot on this year's watch list, and he has tallied 24 receptions for 261 yards and one touchdown over his three years with Arizona.