The Wonderful Whizard of Az

May 30, 2007 by Walter Mitchell

We’re off to see the Whizard…the wonderful Whizard of Az. Certainly on the advent of June there is great hope among all 32 NFL franchises that the brand new season will bring fortuitous winds, sunny skies and a golden brick road to the 2008 Super Bowl. In Arizona there is fresh optimism for an NFL franchise that has been mired in failure and misfortune virtually for decades on end. At the center of that optimism is the brand new head coach, Ken Whisenhunt, who in my opinion, has already established himself as the most intuitive and intelligent coach the Cardinals have had since Don Coryell. Here are the reasons why:

(1) A Bird in Hand. The first smart decision Ken Whisenhunt made is one that not too many onlookers have given him recognition for. Whiz was right at or near the top of the Steelers’ list of candidates to become Bill Cowher’s successor. So was Whiz’s colleague, Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Line Coach Russ Grimm. The Cardinals were interested in both Whisenhunt and Grimm and both elected to accept interviews with the Cardinals while waiting for the Steelers to decide what direction to take.

There were local Pittsburgh pundits and national pundits who predicted that Whiz was a lock for the Steelers’ job. After all, his quick development of QB Ben Roethlisberger enabled the Steelers to go 13-0 with Big Ben as a rookie and, better yet, win the Super Bowl with Big Ben as a sophomore.

There were some pundits who lauded Grimm for his “Steeler-like” resolve and toughness, and felt that he fit the persona of a Steeler head coach more favorably than Whisenhunt.

As the Steelers dilly-dallied in painstaking fashion, Ken Whisenhunt decided he had waited long enough and called the Cardinals to express his interest in taking the job. The Cardinals wasted no time. Whisenhunt was their guy and their guy had agreed to sign on the dotted line.

This decision by Ken Whisenhunt is symbolic. What it means is…the man is decisive. Here he was a leading candidate for a head coaching position that any NFL coach would certainly recognize as one of the top two or three jobs in the league, and because the Steelers were dragging the process out, and there was a chance that he wouldn’t get the job after all, Whisenhunt decided to take the job that was offered to him.

One has to wonder whether Russ Grimm regrets not making the call that Whiz did. Had he been the one to call first, chances are that he would be the Cardinals’ head coach, especially in light of the fact that Grimm was particularly impressive in his interviews with the Cardinals and with the Arizona media.

Regardless, the Cardinals wound up landing both Ken Whisenhunt and Russ Grimm, and Grimm will “ride shotgun” with Whiz until Grimm’s tabbed for a head coaching job elsewhere.

(2) Meet the Press. What a refreshing change Ken Whisenhunt’s introductory press conference was. He offered no promises, no self-aggrandizing pie charts and no bombastic and/or evangelistic rhetoric. He simply expressed the desire to get to work.

(3) A Scout’s Motto: Be Prepared. One of the very first things Whiz did as Head Coach was gather his scouts and inform them precisely of what he’s looking for in potential draftees. Two very important things were accomplished at this meeting: (a) Whiz was able to emphasize his draft philosophy; (b) he was able to incorporate a team atmosphere with his scouts and get them all on the same page. One cannot empasize enough how critical these two things are to an organization.

(4) An Open Mind and the Golden Rule. Ken Whisenhunt agreed to interview the incumbent defensive coordinator, Clancy Pendergast, in the spirit of retaining Pendergast in his familiar role. Most new head coaches would be admanant about severing all ties with the previous coaching staff, and perhaps rightly so. Whiz was impressed with the case Pendergast made for staying on and subsequently re-appointed him. One gets the sense that had Whiz found himself in a familiar position at Pittsburgh, he would have wanted the same consideration. And while Whiz certainly touts a far greater success record than Pendergast (albeit with a far more successful organization), all Whiz needed to hear was Pendergast’s cogent assessment of what strides his defenses had made over the past three years and what areas needed to be improved.

(5) Star Powered Staff. We Cardinal fans were treated to a highly unusual array of brilliant assistant coach signings in the days and weeks following Whiz’s appointment. Obviously, Whiz made an enormous impression on the Bidwills and Rod Graves (I was going to write this up as a “Rod and Staff” thing, but I spared you this one!), because unlike past head coaches in the desert, Ken Whisenhunt assembled a first-rate coaching staff, from top to bottom.

(6) Making a Tough Statement. When the highly touted, young WR coach, Richie Anderson, was busted for soliciting an under-cover prostitute, Whiz wasted no time releasing Anderson from his contract with the team. In doing so, Whiz sent a message to the entire organization: the Cardinals will not become the Bengals of the NFC. This decision was particularly astute in light of the current climate in the NFL regarding NFL employees and the law.

(7) Building Inside Out. It worked for Bill Parcells…but if you ask Parcells he would probably tell you that he learned that philosophy from studying the likes of Chuck Knox. Whiz’s free agent signings and his draft picks indicate that he did not waiver one iota from his plan. His understanding of what it takes to win football games by fully committing to running the ball on offense, and stopping the run on defense, is right on the money.

Best of all, he resisted temptation at its very highest…as in passing over a player at #5 in the draft, in star RB Adrian Peterson, that surely had him drooling…in order to stand firm on the philosophy. Offensive tackle Levi Brown was not a sexy pick at #5…but the bottom line is that winning is the sexiest thing of all, and Whiz knows that to win he must win the line of scrimmage battles first.

Better still…when was the last time the Cardinals actually moved up early in a draft? Whiz was able to land the best run plugging defensive tackle by far in this draft in Alan Branch…with the #33 pick no less! With this move…the Cardinals took a major step in thwarting the likes of Shaun Alexander, Frank Gore and Steven Jackson.

Landing both Levi Brown and Alan Branch in this draft is like landing both Ken Whisenhunt and Russ Grimm on the coaching staff. The Cardinals hit the jackpot on both counts.

(8) Building Muscle and Endurance. Perhaps the most significant addition ot the Cardinal family was the appointment of Stength and Conditioning guru John Lott. With Lott came a brand new state-of-the-art training facility. As was echoed in “Field of Dreams”…“if you build it, they will come.” You want to invest in running the ball and stopping the run? It all begins and ends here. This about the smartest thing the Cardinals have ever done.

(9) Emphasizing Competition. Have you noticed that other than the highest paid free agent, C Al Johnson, no Cardinal free agent signee or draft pick has been trotted out as an immediate starter? With Ken Whisenhunt, the words and the music match. The words are: “We want competition at every position.” And the music is: “No one will be handed anything.”

(10) Eye to Eye Communication. Ken Whisenhunt is coaching under the intense glare of the Arizona sun without sunglasses on. He says, “I want to look players in the eye when I talk with them.” Like I said, the words and the music match.

Ken Whisenhunt will be calling his own plays on offense…the first Cardinal head coach to do since…well…Don Coryell.

Whiz’s offense should be dynamic…he has a budding superstar at QB in Matt Leinart…a Pro Bowl caliber RB in Edgerrin James, who now will be running behind a much more physical offensive line and the addition of a lead blocking FB in veteran Terrelle Smith. Whiz has moved Anquan Boldin back to the slot where he terrorized defenses as a rookie. Larry Fitzgerald is a taller and potentially more dynamic version of Cris Carter…and if that isn’t enough there’s a 6’8” TE in Leonard Pope to throw to over the middle and up the seams.

On defense, regardless of whether the Cardinals align in a standard 4-3 or a hybrid version of the 3-4, this will be a swarming, fast defense that should produce a myriad of turnovers, particularly once the pass coverage becomes more aggressive….and especially when Adrian Wilson is in the opponents’ heads.

And perhaps the most significant changes will be manifested on special teams where several outstanding free agents were added to turn these units into game changing winners.

The overall depth of this football team is by far the best it’s been in decades. In fact, the toughest decisions Whiz may have to make this year will be in deciding on the roster. Try to do it on your own right now without having to let go a player you really, really like.

Can the much beleaguered Cardinal fans hope for a winning team this year? Sure, the players are learning new systems and adjusting to a new coaching staff…but so were the Saints and Jets last year, weren’t they?

And certainly we all should be willing to give a new coaching staff some time…and rightfully so.

And rightfully so, all Whiz has pledged is an eagerness to work hard…major kudos there because that’s exactly what he and the entire organization have been doing since he arrived in Glendale.

But…can we as Cardinal fans dare to dream the impossible dream?

This year’s Super Bowl is not in Kansas, Dorothy!

Here’s the tantalizing thing…

Click your Cardinal ruby slippers and repeat after me: “There’s no place like home…There’s no place like home…There’s no place like home.”

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