49ers history vs. Cardinals isn’t in Niners’ recent favor

The 49ers face off against their NFC West rivals, the Cardinals, on Monday Night Football in Week 11 where the Niners want to reverse some recent history.

When San Francisco 49ers fans think of a team that has generally “owned” the Niners in recent years, the Seattle Seahawks probably come to mind first.

It’s not a bad choice, especially considering the trend between 2012 and 2021 when now-Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson regularly broke the hearts of the Faithful on a seemingly yearly basis.

However, not too far behind the Hawks in terms of frustrating San Francisco fans, the Arizona Cardinals have somehow turned into a pesky opponent that has historically given the 49ers trouble in recent years.

With the Niners traveling to Mexico City, Mexico, to square off against the Cardinals on Monday Night Football in Week 11, Niner Noise goes back through the history San Francisco has had against its division rivals, particularly looking at the last few years under head coach Kyle Shanahan dating back to 2017.

49ers history vs. Cardinals

The 49ers and Cardinals have played each other a whopping 61 times with the first contest taking place back when the Red Birds were actually the Chicago Cardinals in 1951.

The Niners lost that game 27-21, for what it’s worth.

From Chicago to St. Louis, then turning into the Phoenix Cardinals, San Francisco’s divisional opponents have narrowed the gap between wins and losses that have still edged in the 49ers’ favor.

Related Story: Taking stock of 49ers-Cardinals rivalry entering 2022

Despite recent trends, the Niners lead the all-time series 32-29, and Monday’s contest will mark the 62nd time these two teams have faced each other in the regular season.

Cardinals have given Kyle Shanahan, 49ers trouble in recent years

While most fans think of Seattle as the No. 1 team that seemingly always gives San Francisco fits, Arizona has also been problematic in recent years, too, especially with Shanahan at the helm.

The Cardinals swept the season series in Shanahan’s first year, 2017, and then followed up with the same result over the 49ers the following year, too. 2019 turned out to be the only year in Shanahan’s tenure where the Niners managed to sweep the season series against Arizona, and those two games were awfully tough.

San Francisco needed a gutsy win on Halloween at Arizona first, then it required some late-game heroics from former running back Jeff Wilson Jr. to come from behind at home for the second win that season.

The two teams split the season series in 2020, while the Cardinals swept the 49ers in 2021 despite the Niners making it all the way to the NFC Championship game last year.

Since Shanahan took over, San Francisco is a mere 3-7 against Arizona. And one can only hope that trend shifts back toward the 49ers’ favor on Monday night when these two teams face off from Mexico City.