| Team: | Arizona Cardinals |
| Year: | 2003 |
| Record: | 4–12 |
| Division Place: | 4th NFC West |
| Coach: | Dave McGinnis |
| General Manager: | Rod Graves |
| Owner: | Bill Bidwill |
| Stadium: | Sun Devil Stadium |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers: | WR Anquan Boldin |
| Shortnavlink: | Cardinals seasons |
The Arizona Cardinals season was the franchise's 105th season, 84th season in the National Football League and the 16th in Arizona. The team was unable to improve upon their previous output of 5–11, instead winning only four games,[1] although this was not considered a disaster as before their win over the Packers there was talk the 2003 Cardinals would become the first NFL team to go 0–16.[2] For the fifth consecutive season, the franchise failed to reach the playoffs, and based on point differential had the worst record in the only NFL season where every team won at least four games.[3] This resulted in the Cardinals firing head coach Dave McGinnis and replacing him with Dennis Green. In his NFL debut, Anquan Boldin had 217 receiving yards.[4]
See main article: article and 2003 NFL Draft.
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 7 | at Detroit Lions | L 24–42 | 0–1 | Ford Field | 60,691 | |
| 2 | September 14 | Seattle Seahawks | L 0–38 | 0–2 | Sun Devil Stadium | 23,127 | |
| 3 | September 21 | Green Bay Packers | W 20–13 | 1–2 | Sun Devil Stadium | 58,784 | |
| 4 | September 28 | at St. Louis Rams | L 13–37 | 1–3 | Edward Jones Dome | 65,758 | |
| 5 | October 5 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 7–24 | 1–4 | Texas Stadium | 63,601 | |
| 6 | October 12 | Baltimore Ravens | L 18–26 | 1–5 | Sun Devil Stadium | 24,193 | |
| 7 | Bye | ||||||
| 8 | October 26 | San Francisco 49ers | W 16–13 | 2–5 | Sun Devil Stadium | 40,824 | |
| 9 | November 2 | Cincinnati Bengals | W 17–14 | 3–5 | Sun Devil Stadium | 23,531 | |
| 10 | November 9 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 15–28 | 3–6 | Heinz Field | 59,520 | |
| 11 | November 16 | at Cleveland Browns | L 6–44 | 3–7 | Cleveland Browns Stadium | 72,908 | |
| 12 | November 23 | St. Louis Rams | L 27–30 | 3–8 | Sun Devil Stadium | 42,089 | |
| 13 | November 30 | at Chicago Bears | L 3–28 | 3–9 | Soldier Field | 61,550 | |
| 14 | December 7 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 14–50 | 3–10 | San Francisco Stadium | 66,975 | |
| 15 | December 14 | Carolina Panthers | L 17–20 | 3–11 | Sun Devil Stadium | 23,217 | |
| 16 | December 21 | at Seattle Seahawks | L 10–28 | 3–12 | Seahawks Stadium | 64,899 | |
| 17 | December 28 | Minnesota Vikings | W 18–17 | 4–12 | Sun Devil Stadium | 52,734 | |
The Cardinals overcame an 11-point deficit late in the fourth quarter to knock the Vikings out of a playoff berth.