The Arizona Cardinals' coaching search has officially concluded, as they first settled on Mike LaFleur, and he was able to fill all of the vacancies on his staff. The team made the official announcement on Friday.
Hired late in the coaching cycle, LaFleur was sort of limited when it came to making the optimal hirings ahead of free agency, so he worked with what he had.
What was widely expected became official: Arizona opted to hang onto defensive coordinator Nick Rallis, who was hired by Jonathan Gannon in 2023.
The Cardinals hired the following guys to serve under Rallis’ leadership on defense: Pete Kwiatkowski, Alec Osborne, Rod Wilson, Matt Feeney, Zac Etheridge, Cristian Garcia, and Brent Jackson.
LaFleur hired former head coach Nathaniel Hackett to be his offensive coordinator, poaching him from his brother Mike’s staff in Green Bay.
Hackett will be the leader of an up-and-coming offense. The following guys were hired to work under him: Connor Senger, Matt Schaub, Matt Merritt, Tony Sorrentino, Justin Frye, Chris Cook, Jake Moreland, and Brett Ekkens.
MORE: Cardinals Legend Officially Into Hall Of Fame With Little Doubt
MORE: Cardinals Could Benefit From Signing Of AFC South Offensive Lineman
Michael Ghobrial rounded out the coordinator hirings after being brought in for special teams. Ghobrial hired the following guys: Sam Sewell, Kenny Bell, and Jay Razzano.
Nick Rallis, Connor Senger, Justin Frye, Chris Cook, Matt Feeney, Cristian Garcia, Sam Sewell, Kenny Bell, and Jay Razzano all return from the previous coaching staff.
Considering general manager Monti Ossenfort chose to make the decision on head coach so late in the game, we’d say the way LaFleur assembled his staff is not bad at all, considering how quickly he needed to work.
2026 will be a transition year for sure, but overall, nicely done. Will be exciting to see this new product take the field in September.