| 1990 Phoenix Cardinals season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Bill Bidwill |
| General manager | Larry Wilson |
| Head coach | Joe Bugel |
| Home stadium | Sun Devil Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 5–11 |
| Division place | 5th NFC East |
| Playoffs | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers | RB Johnny Johnson |
The 1990 Phoenix Cardinals season was the franchise's 92nd season, 71st season in the National Football League and the 3rd in Arizona. Despite rookie running back Johnny Johnson creating a good enough impression to make the Pro Bowl, the Cardinals did not improve upon their 5–11 record from 1989.
| 1990 Phoenix Cardinals draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 31 | Anthony Thompson | Running back | Indiana | |
| 3 | 58 | Ricky Proehl | Wide receiver | Wake Forest | |
| 4 | 85 | Travis Davis | Nose tackle | Michigan State | |
| 5 | 115 | Larry Centers * | Fullback | Stephen F. Austin | |
| 6 | 142 | Tyrone Shavers | Wide receiver | Lamar | |
| 7 | 169 | Johnny Johnson * | Running back | San Jose State | |
| 8 | 199 | Mickey Washington | Cornerback | Texas A&M | |
| 9 | 225 | David Bavaro | Linebacker | Syracuse | |
| 10 | 252 | Dave Elle | Tight end | South Dakota | |
| 11 | 282 | Dempsey Norman | Wide receiver | St. Francis (IL) | |
| 12 | 308 | Donnie Riley | Running back | Central Michigan | |
| 12 | 330 | Ken McMichel | Defensive back | Oklahoma | |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
| Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
Strength and conditioning
|
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 9 | at Washington Redskins | L 0–31 | 0–1 | RFK Stadium | 52,649 | Recap |
| 2 | September 16 | at Philadelphia Eagles | W 23–21 | 1–1 | Veterans Stadium | 64,396 | Recap |
| 3 | September 23 | at New Orleans Saints | L 7–28 | 1–2 | Louisiana Superdome | 61,110 | Recap |
| 4 | September 30 | Washington Redskins | L 10–38 | 1–3 | Sun Devil Stadium | 49,303 | Recap |
| 5 | Bye | ||||||
| 6 | October 14 | Dallas Cowboys | W 20–3 | 2–3 | Sun Devil Stadium | 45,235 | Recap |
| 7 | October 21 | at New York Giants | L 19–20 | 2–4 | Giants Stadium | 76,518 | Recap |
| 8 | October 28 | Chicago Bears | L 21–31 | 2–5 | Sun Devil Stadium | 71,233 | Recap |
| 9 | November 4 | at Miami Dolphins | L 3–23 | 2–6 | Joe Robbie Stadium | 54,294 | Recap |
| 10 | November 11 | at Buffalo Bills | L 14–45 | 2–7 | Rich Stadium | 74,904 | Recap |
| 11 | November 18 | Green Bay Packers | L 21–24 | 2–8 | Sun Devil Stadium | 46,878 | Recap |
| 12 | November 25 | New England Patriots | W 34–14 | 3–8 | Sun Devil Stadium | 30,110 | Recap |
| 13 | December 2 | Indianapolis Colts | W 20–17 | 4–8 | Sun Devil Stadium | 31,885 | Recap |
| 14 | December 9 | at Atlanta Falcons | W 24–13 | 5–8 | Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium | 36,222 | Recap |
| 15 | December 16 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 10–41 | 5–9 | Texas Stadium | 60,190 | Recap |
| 16 | December 23 | New York Giants | L 21–24 | 5–10 | Sun Devil Stadium | 41,212 | Recap |
| 17 | December 29 | Philadelphia Eagles | L 21–23 | 5–11 | Sun Devil Stadium | 31,796 | Recap |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Redskins | 7 | 7 | 14 | 3 | 31 |
at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, Washington, District of Columbia
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 0 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 23 |
| Eagles | 14 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
at Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Saints | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 28 |
at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Redskins | 0 | 7 | 10 | 21 | 38 |
| Cardinals | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cowboys | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Cardinals | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 20 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 3 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 19 |
| Giants | 7 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 20 |
at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bears | 7 | 21 | 0 | 3 | 31 |
| Cardinals | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Dolphins | 3 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 23 |
at Joe Robbie Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Bills | 0 | 21 | 0 | 24 | 45 |
at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 7 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 24 |
| Cardinals | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patriots | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Cardinals | 7 | 7 | 10 | 10 | 34 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colts | 10 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| Cardinals | 0 | 6 | 0 | 14 | 20 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 0 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| Falcons | 3 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinals | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| Cowboys | 13 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 41 |
at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eagles | 7 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 23 |
| Cardinals | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 21 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
| NFC East | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| (2) New York Giants | 13 | 3 | 0 | .813 | 7–1 | 10–2 | 335 | 211 | W2 |
| (4) Philadelphia Eagles | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 5–3 | 9–3 | 396 | 299 | W3 |
| (5) Washington Redskins | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 4–4 | 7–5 | 381 | 301 | W1 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 2–6 | 6–8 | 244 | 308 | L2 |
| Phoenix Cardinals | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 2–6 | 3–9 | 268 | 396 | L3 |