| Team: | Phoenix Cardinals |
| Year: | 1990 |
| Record: | 5–11 |
| Division Place: | 5th NFC East |
| Coach: | Joe Bugel |
| General Manager: | Larry Wilson |
| Owner: | Bill Bidwill |
| Stadium: | Sun Devil Stadium |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers: | RB Johnny Johnson |
| Shortnavlink: | Cardinals seasons |
The 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.
See main article: 1990 NFL draft. [1]
| 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 | Philadelphia Eagles | L 21–23 | 5–11 | Sun Devil Stadium | 31,796 | Recap | ||
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | ||||||||