At the end of last season, the Arizona Cardinals were one of those teams that most people would say had nothing to play for. Some would even say winning in December was bad because they would have to tank for draft position.

Think of the story of the 2024 Cardinals in December, where teams with terrible records win a few games and it’s considered meaningless. The Cardinals won games at the Pittsburgh Steelers and Philadelphia Eagles last December at the end of Jonathan Gannon’s first season as head coach. The 4-13 record wasn’t impressive, but the good vibes of a strong finish remained.

The Cardinals are in first place of the NFC West and are getting better every week. The New York Jets came to Arizona after a win over the Houston Texans in Week 9 and some extra rest after playing on Thursday, and the Cardinals embarrassed them. Arizona improved to 6-4 with the 31-6 win. They have won four games in a row.

The Cardinals are building something pretty good with Gannon. That started late last season, after they were far from the playoff race.

Cardinals dominate the Jets

The biggest reason the Cardinals are improving is the defense. The offense, featuring Kyler Murray, James Conner, Trey McBride and rookie Marvin Harrison Jr., is expected to be good. The defense was a question, especially after there weren’t many additions this offseason.

The Jets couldn’t do anything on offense on Sunday. Aaron Rodgers had 40 yards on 11 attempts in the first half. He was under constant pressure. Gannon, who got the head coaching job in Arizona for his work as the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive coordinator, is doing an excellent job of getting the most out of a unit that doesn’t have a lot of top talent.

The Jets went on a long drive to start the second half. But Arizona held inside the 10-yard line and got a stop on fourth down when Rodgers was hit from behind and a pass blew out of his hands and fell incomplete. That was practically it for the Jets’ chances of winning.

The Cardinals offense has been a bit inconsistent this season, but it was good on Sunday. Conner and Murray scored rushing touchdowns in the first half and Harrison caught one in the corner of the end zone. Murray was 17 of 19 for 199 yards in the first half against a supposedly talented Jets defense. The Cardinals led 24-6 at halftime.

It was a complete performance. The Cardinals played like they should for a first-place team.

Cardinals remain for NFC West

The Jets will have a challenge to hang on and win the NFC West. The San Francisco 49ers haven’t been great for most of this season, but they still have the most talent in the division. The Los Angeles Rams, who play Monday night, are improving as they get healthy.

But the cardinals aren’t going away. Gannon appears to be a very good addition to the organization, which has a young roster and some exciting stars on the offensive side. Sunday marked the Cardinals’ fourth straight win, and they have played better each week during that stretch.

Even if the Cardinals don’t win the NFC West and get a wild-card spot in a loaded NFC, there are a lot of arrows pointing up for the future franchise. And if their improvement continues, there’s no reason why they can’t win the division a year ahead of schedule.