After a loss to the Seattle Seahawks, the final touches on a 3-13 season, the Arizona Cardinals announced Monday the firing of first-year head coach Steve Wilks.
It was the worst inaugural season ever for an Arizona Cardinals head coach. It’s also the worst season the team has had since going 3-13 in 2000. Head coach Vince Tobin was fired in the middle of that year.
The Cardinals hired Wilks in January after he spent the last 12 years as an assistant coach in the NFL, most recently as a defensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers in 2017.
The team originally signed Wilks to a four-year deal with a team option for a fifth year.
Wilks took over a team that went 8-8 last season. With quarterback Carson Palmer’s retirement after the season, the team spent its first-round pick on quarterback Josh Rosen out of UCLA.
Wilks is one of 10 head coaches in NFL history to be fired after their first season.
During a news conference Monday, Cardinals President Michael Bidwill said, “Looking back on last year, the coaching search, I didn’t get it right."
The offense struggled heavily all year long, ranking last in total offense, last in total points, last in yards per play, last in first downs per game and last in yards per game. This prompted turmoil midseason, causing the firing of first-year offensive coordinator Mike McCoy.
Outside the 3-13 record, a "lack of competitiveness" this season was a big reason for Wilks' firing, Bidwill said.
The team faced more complications in the middle of the year with reports that star cornerback Patrick Peterson wanted to be traded by the trade deadline in October. Wilks said it wasn’t happening and Peterson re-affirmed his commitment to the team days later.
Both Bidwill and General Manager Steve Keim seemed to agree Monday that one year was enough to evaluate Wilks' performance as head coach, regardless of the injuries the Cardinals suffered, due to the lack of competitiveness from the team this season.
Now, for the second-straight year, the Cardinals will be in the market for a new head coach. Last year, the Cards were one of seven teams that hired a new head coach. This year, there could be eight or more NFL teams hiring new coaches this offseason.
At the time of the Wilks firing, the Buccaneers, Jets, Broncos, Dolphins and Bengals had already fired their head coaches. Additionally, the Packers and Browns have openings after midseason firings.
Some people of interest have already popped up on the radar for potential Wilks replacements, most notably former Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy.
Ironically, the Packers fired McCarthy after being upset at home by the Arizona Cardinals Dec. 2. The Packers were 4-7-1 on the year. He went 125-77-2 in 13 years with the team, which included a Super Bowl win in 2010 and nine playoff appearances.
McCarthy will likely be a candidate for multiple teams and anything can happen in the offseason, he's just the first name we've heard connected to the potential job opening. There are also plenty of other names that the team will be interested in as well, a list that is expected to grow in the next month until someone is chosen.