Every year, the NFLPA surveys players from all 32 teams in the NFL and grades the franchises by categories. Some of them include treatment of families, locker room quality, ownership and more. The Arizona Cardinals report card put them just outside the bottom five in the league at 27th in 2024. You would think that the Cardinals would improve their grade this season as they improved in the win column this year, but that was not the case.
The Arizona Cardinals finish at the bottom of this year’s Report Card rankings (32nd). The top concern for many players is the need for an updated, modernized and expanded team facility. Nearly every space within the facility is described as too small, especially the team’s locker room.
Many players also highlight non-construction related improvements that would enhance their workplace conditions, such as an upgraded food program with more variety and higher quality offerings, as well as pre-game sideline passes for their families.
When asked what the team is doing best, many players praise head coach Jonathan Gannon for fostering a strong team culture.
A statement from the team was released to the public soon after the report cards were released. It reads as follows,
“Our goal is to provide the best possible environment, facilities and resources and to give our team the greatest opportunity to succeed. We are working hard to achieve that. Last season, we shared with our players the plans for a new training facility at the existing Tempe location with a targeted completion date of 2027. We have hired Rossetti, a leading architecture firm that has worked with a number of FL teams on their new facilities, and the design process is underway. We will continue to explore all the other ways – large and small – that we can get better in every single area of out operation.”
It is clear that the Cardinals front office knows they have work to do and in some aspects, but when fans see that the Cardinals are only ranked in the top 20 of two categories (Team Travel and Head Coach) it is concerning.
Coming in at bottom three in six (!!) separate categories is simply unacceptable. For example, the NFLPA reports that 50% of Cardinals players feel they have enough space in their individual lockers, a ranking of 30 out of 32.
Only 24% of the players believe that the overall locker room size is adequate, ranking the Cardinals 32 out of 32 teams. As far as the training room goes, 65% of Cardinals players feel they have enough full-time trainers, ranking them 32 out of 32 teams.
65% of players feel they have enough full-time physical therapists, a rank of 29 out of 32. 67% of players feel they have sufficient hot tub space, a rank of 28 out of 32. 58% of players feel they have enough cold tub space, a rank of 31 out of 32.
On a positive note, the players like their coach! Jonathan Gannon received an A- grade in his debut season in 2024, which made him the 15th ranked Head Coach in the NFL.
Moving up seven spots to eighth is no small feat, so while there are a lot of changes needed, they clearly have a head coach that the players can and will get behind.
*Get the BEST Phoenix sports insider information, and exclusive content. SIGN UP HERE to unlock our premium content!*
Reporter Dallas Jones covers general assignment for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on his X account, @DallasJonesy.Â
