The Arizona Cardinals have been the best team in the NFC West this year, but have yet to knock down the Seattle Seahawks, who have owned the division the past two seasons.

Arizona gets its first crack on the schedule at the two-time defending NFC champions tonight on the road, with their most recent matchups having been blowout losses.

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Last November’s meeting saw the 9-1 Cardinals get hammered in a 19-3 defeat that propelled Seattle to six straight wins to close the regular season. Arizona was again victims of that streak in Week 16, when the Seahawks thrashed them 35-6.

Carson Palmer, however, did not play in either of those games as Seattle took advantage of the quarterback’s season-ending ACL injury to rock his back-ups.

Now healthy, Palmer has lit up opponents so far this year to the tune of a 110.2 passer rating – best in the NFC and behind only Cincinnati’s Andy Dalton and New England’s Tom Brady in the NFL.

“Carson is playing phenomenal football,” said Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, Palmer’s former coach at the University of Southern California. “He looks as good as he’s ever looked. He’s in great command of the offense.

“I think it’s really the best I’ve ever seen him in all the years he’s been out there playing.”

The Cardinals have won 12 of the 14 games Palmer has played in since the start of last season, while Seattle is coming off a bye week following two straight victories.