GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Arizona Cardinals quarterback Sam Bradford laid on the grass, hands on his helmet, as the Chicago Bears celebrated the recovery of his fumble nearby.

It marked the end of his afternoon and the beginning of Josh Rosen's NFL career.

It was Bradford's third turnover Sunday, the latest mishap in a three-quarter-long offensive meltdown that started after Bradford threw a 21-yard laser to David Johnson for a touchdown that put the Cardinals up 14-0 late in the first quarter.

It went downhill from there.

But it has been going downhill for a while.

After the fumble, Cardinals coach Steve Wilks walked over to Bradford, who was sitting on the bench, and whispered something in his ear.

Then quarterbacks coach Byron Leftwich walked over to Rosen, the 10th overall pick in this spring's draft, and gave him a two-word message: "Get ready."

The Josh Rosen era started Sunday. It needed to. The Cardinals' offensive failures, aside from Bradford's two touchdown passes to start the game, made it necessary.

Arizona finally got to a point where its future had to be its present.

With 4:31 left in the game and Arizona trailing 16-14, Wilks made the decision that has been hovering over this team since April 26, when the Cardinals traded the 15th pick, a third-rounder and a fifth-rounder to the Oakland Raiders to move up five spots to No. 10. There awaited the franchise's quarterback of the future.

Sunday, he finally arrived.

And Wilks had no problem making the move.

"No, no, just his character, his demeanor, things that I know about him, he can handle the situation," Wilks said. "I felt like we needed a spark and what's the right time to throw a rookie in there?

"So, I had total confidence in him in that moment and that's the reason why I put him in the game."

It wasn't the easiest of situations for Rosen to make his NFL debut, however.

The Cardinals, already 0-2, needed the win. Their offense had been dismal since the end of the first quarter. One of the best pass-rushers in all of football -- Khalil Mack -- was staring at him from across the line of scrimmage. Seventy-five yards separated Rosen and the Cardinals from a touchdown. About 35 were between him and the game-winning field goal.

That situation was "pretty difficult" to be in as a rookie, wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald said.

Before Rosen took the field, Bradford gave him a quick piece of advice: "Go get the win, be him, go out there and do what he is capable of, and lead this team."

He was imparting words of wisdom, sure, but they were also goals Bradford couldn't attain himself.

Bradford hadn't been able to win for Arizona. He hadn't showed what he's capable of, playing inconsistent and looking inaccurate.

Fitzgerald has seen plenty in his career and wasn't surprised when Bradford was benched for Rosen, but he still felt bad for Bradford.

"He works his tail off every day and, you know, he gives it his best," Fitzgerald said. "But, you have a first-round pick and I guess you're on borrowed time when you're in that position."

If his Cardinals career ended Sunday afternoon, Bradford will have thrown for just 400 yards, two touchdowns and four picks in three games. The offense has scored the fewest points and gained the fewest yards in the league.

And now it's up to Rosen to clean that up. If it's even fixable.

His first try at it wasn't impressive. He threw one interception and had a pick-six called back. His two drives stalled, one on the interception and one on a sack. He would not be a savior on this day as the Cardinals lost 16-14.

But Rosen didn't seem fazed.

"I've got a lot to work on," he said.

He added: "The NFL is a very tough league and full of tough situations with tough players. So, it's just kind of the name of the game."

Sunday was Rosen's chance to get his feet wet, to get his first NFL touches without the pressure of being a starting quarterback.

His teammates around him thought the 21-year-old handled it and himself rather well.

"He seemed like he was fine," left tackle D.J. Humphries said. "He seemed like it wasn't too big for him."

"You've got to tip your hat to him," Fitzgerald said. "He does a great job of preparing."

"Josh is a heck of a player," right guard Justin Pugh said. "We know what he brings to the table."

Even though the Cardinals' future is its present, Wilks wouldn't declare one quarterback or the other the starter on Sunday. He wanted to watch film of both and make a reasoned decision instead of a rash one immediately after the game.

Rosen walked out of the locker room with the same easy-going stride that has carried him this far. He had the same look on his face that he has had standing on the sideline and jogging on the field for his first NFL snap.

He was "sort of" mad at himself for how he played, but Rosen's complex mind understood what had just happened. He was just happy he got the chance.

"I guess you could say I'm kind of content that I got to get out there and sort of understand and get the feel of a real NFL game," Rosen said. "But I definitely could play a lot better.

"So, I'm looking forward to getting better in the weeks to come."