Are Arians, Palmer and Cardinals really for real?

After working his magic with Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts a year ago, Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians is up to his old tricks, this time resurrecting the career of former Pro Bowl caliber veteran Carson Palmer – and simultaneously, the near-future hopes of a Cardinals’ franchise desperate to get back into legitimate Super Bowl title contention ever since the beloved Kurt Warner hung up his cleats.

Arians has helped Palmer get back to near-elite status as he ranks ninth in passing heading into the Cardinals’ huge Week 17 regular season finale against San Francisco. While Palmer has thrown 21 interceptions to go along with his 22 TD passes, he has managed to give the Cardinals a chance to win far more often than not, which is exactly what they’ve done. 

Todd Bowles them over!

Arizona Cardinals' defensive coordinator 

Todd Bowles.

Maybe it’s me, but I’m suddenly thinking the Arizona Cardinals are a lot more ‘legit’ than I ever thought this season.

While Arizona ranks just 23rd in total offense, they are also ranked a more impressive 16th in scoring. More importantly, the Cardinals are very, very good defensively for outstanding coordinator Todd Bowles.

Led by its league-leading run defense, Arizona is ranked sixth in total defense, mostly by limiting its opponents to a paltry 84.5 yards per game on the ground and just 20.1 points per contest (seventh). Bowles’ underrated defense completely shut down the Seattle Seahawks and gifted quarterback Russell Wilson in Week 16 and now have the look of a very legitimate contender in the NFC.

What do you think Eye On Sports readers? Are the Arizona Cardinals legitimate? How many postseason games will they win if any? Let me know what you think readers.