Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
I must admit, I did not allow myself to get all that excited about the Cardinals' prospects of hiring Ken Whisenhunt as the next head coach. Like many of us, I believed that Whisenhunt was using the Cardinals' interest in him as leverege for getting the head coaching job he really wanted in Pittsburgh. I also felt quite certain that Whisenhunt would not be interested in holding on to the current Cardinal assistant coaches, which was likely going to be a sticking point for many or all of the Cardinals' head coaching candidates.
All that being said, I am now delirious that the Cardinals were able to sign Ken Whisenhunt. Here are the many reasons why:
1. He's young and driven.
2. As Len Pasquarelli of ESPN said, Whisenhunt is a "fearless playcaller."
3. As I have maintained all along, the Cardinals needed, this time around, to protect their greatest investment, QB Matt Leinart, by surrounding him with an offensive minded head coach. In Whisenhunt, Matt Leinart and the offense is in excellent hands.
4. He has a Super Bowl ring...and called great games during the Steelers' stretch as #6 seed to Super Bowl Champions (all road wins). And he called a great game in the Super Bowl, which, to me, means that he can deliver when the pressure is the highest.
5. He played in the NFL, so he's no stranger to the players' perspectives.
6. He did a very nice job developing Ben Roethlisberger in such a short time. Yes, Big Ben was off his game this year, but one has to wonder about all the adversity in Pittsburgh following Roethlisberger's motorcycle injury, concussions...and Bill Cowher's mysterious, yet readily perceivable ambivalence about coaching the Steelers this past year.
7. The excitement just thinking about the way Whis will use Anquan Boldin in Hines Ward's role. Now we need a Randle-El-like slot buster on the other side.
I am a tad surprised that Whis agreed to retain Clancy Pendergast as DC, but I am willing to give Pendy another chance to prove that he can run an efficiently productive and stingy defense, which hopefully will feature tight, ballhawking pass coverage this time around.
Pendergast has shown a strong ability to cater his defense to certain players' strengths...players such as Adrian Wilson, Chike Okeafor, Darnell Dockett and Karlos Dansby.
I must admit that I was hoping that Whisenhunt would bring the Steelers' vaunted 3-4 defense to Arizona by hiring one of the Steeler defensive coaches. The Cardinals have 3-4 personnel in place if they ever decided to make the switch. They could plug the massive Gabe Watson in at NT, play Dockett and Clancy at DTs, Dansby, Okeafor and perhaps Adalius Thomas (UFA) at OLB and Gerald Hayes and Monte Beisel at ILB. Perhaps Whis can discuss this option with CP...and CP has toyed with the 3-4 the past couple of years anyway.
It will be interesting to see how the staff takes shape in the days and weeks ahead....and what coaches Whis will be able to have join him from the staff in Pittsburgh.
As you know, I was hoping for Norm Chow, but...like I said, I didn't think the Cardinals had that great a shot at Whisenhunt...and because of Whisenhunt's youth, NFL playing experience and success as an NFL OC, I have to applaud the Bidwills and Rod Graves for this choice. The process certainly frustrated me...so I want to thank of all you who remained far more patient with the process than I. The key thing is...the Cardinals signed a first-rate talent and the kind of coach who can make football in Arizona very exciting for years to come.
All that being said, I am now delirious that the Cardinals were able to sign Ken Whisenhunt. Here are the many reasons why:
1. He's young and driven.
2. As Len Pasquarelli of ESPN said, Whisenhunt is a "fearless playcaller."
3. As I have maintained all along, the Cardinals needed, this time around, to protect their greatest investment, QB Matt Leinart, by surrounding him with an offensive minded head coach. In Whisenhunt, Matt Leinart and the offense is in excellent hands.
4. He has a Super Bowl ring...and called great games during the Steelers' stretch as #6 seed to Super Bowl Champions (all road wins). And he called a great game in the Super Bowl, which, to me, means that he can deliver when the pressure is the highest.
5. He played in the NFL, so he's no stranger to the players' perspectives.
6. He did a very nice job developing Ben Roethlisberger in such a short time. Yes, Big Ben was off his game this year, but one has to wonder about all the adversity in Pittsburgh following Roethlisberger's motorcycle injury, concussions...and Bill Cowher's mysterious, yet readily perceivable ambivalence about coaching the Steelers this past year.
7. The excitement just thinking about the way Whis will use Anquan Boldin in Hines Ward's role. Now we need a Randle-El-like slot buster on the other side.
I am a tad surprised that Whis agreed to retain Clancy Pendergast as DC, but I am willing to give Pendy another chance to prove that he can run an efficiently productive and stingy defense, which hopefully will feature tight, ballhawking pass coverage this time around.
Pendergast has shown a strong ability to cater his defense to certain players' strengths...players such as Adrian Wilson, Chike Okeafor, Darnell Dockett and Karlos Dansby.
I must admit that I was hoping that Whisenhunt would bring the Steelers' vaunted 3-4 defense to Arizona by hiring one of the Steeler defensive coaches. The Cardinals have 3-4 personnel in place if they ever decided to make the switch. They could plug the massive Gabe Watson in at NT, play Dockett and Clancy at DTs, Dansby, Okeafor and perhaps Adalius Thomas (UFA) at OLB and Gerald Hayes and Monte Beisel at ILB. Perhaps Whis can discuss this option with CP...and CP has toyed with the 3-4 the past couple of years anyway.
It will be interesting to see how the staff takes shape in the days and weeks ahead....and what coaches Whis will be able to have join him from the staff in Pittsburgh.
As you know, I was hoping for Norm Chow, but...like I said, I didn't think the Cardinals had that great a shot at Whisenhunt...and because of Whisenhunt's youth, NFL playing experience and success as an NFL OC, I have to applaud the Bidwills and Rod Graves for this choice. The process certainly frustrated me...so I want to thank of all you who remained far more patient with the process than I. The key thing is...the Cardinals signed a first-rate talent and the kind of coach who can make football in Arizona very exciting for years to come.
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