Kliff Kingsbury hire may have set Arizona Cardinals back for years
By Jim Koch
The hiring of Kliff Kingsbury four years ago could ultimately prove to be one of the worst moves in Arizona Cardinals history.
Following what turned out to be a disastrous 2022 NFL campaign, the Arizona Cardinals realized what had to be done. Kliff Kingsbury, the team’s head coach since 2019, had to go. The firing showed that a mistake had been made. But the Cardinals franchise may not have been aware of the ramifications that would come from bringing Kingsbury onboard in the first place.
At the present time, Cards owner Michael Bidwill is dealing with the mess that Kingsbury left behind. Steve Keim, the former general manager who also contributed to the team’s demise this past fall, has also moved on. Monti Ossenfort replaced the much-maligned Keim, but the new GM may already be regretting his decision to take the job.
Recent reports indicate that Redbirds quarterback Kyler Murray may be preventing the organization from acquiring a top-level head coach. Candidates like Sean Payton, Dan Quinn, DeMeco Ryans and Frank Reich appeared to be near the top of the Cardinals’ wish list. Unfortunately, all four will be coaching elsewhere in 2023.
Arizona Cardinals are stuck with quarterback that former coach left behind
Did Payton, Quinn, Ryans, and Reich steer clear of the desert because of Murray? Actually, the Cards may not have even drafted Murray (Nick Bosa was there for the taking) if it wasn’t for Kingsbury. To make things worse, Bidwill somehow allowed himself to be talked into signing the diminutive signal-caller to a $230.5 million contract-extension last summer.
Thanks to the latest blunder, Arizona is now stuck with Murray for the next few years. Kingsbury will eventually work again, and there’s a very good chance that his next employer will possess a starting passer that can actually see over the line of scrimmage. There’s also a decent possibility that the next quarterback he works with will have something called leadership skills, and won’t feel the need to scream profanities at Kingsbury on national TV.
One also has to assume that Kingsbury had a say in some of the other valuable draft choices that have not worked out for the Cardinals. Who can forget the 62nd-overall selection that the club wasted on pass-catcher Andy Isabella four years ago? There’s also the 49th-overall pick that the Cards used on brittle wide receiver Rondale Moore back in 2021 that is looking like another bad decision as well.
light. Related Story. Mike Kafka in running for Cardinals job
Arizona loyalists assumed that there would be a light at the end of the Kingsbury tunnel. Much to the chagrin of the fans, the remnants of what the departed coach left behind may still be having a negative effect. Whether the Cards hierarchy will succeed in climbing out of the hole that Kingsbury placed them in is anybody’s guess.
Want your voice heard? Join the Raising Zona team!