NFL Insider Discusses Why Cardinals are Taking so Long With Head Coach Search
The Arizona Cardinals are set to conduct second interviews this week, and thus far we have three known finalists: Brian Flores, Lou Anarumo and Mike Kafka.
The aforementioned names will meet with Arizona ahead of the Super Bowl, and there's hope that while the confetti falls at State Farm Stadium, the Cardinals will have a strong idea of who they want to lead them into the new era of Arizona football.
The process has taken a bit longer than some anticipated - the Cardinals join the Indianapolis Colts as the only two franchises that have yet to employ a head coach.
Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer broke down why the process in the desert is taking longer than usual:
"The Cardinals’ slower pace has people wondering. Arizona’s identified three finalists—Kafka, Steelers senior defensive assistant Brian Flores, and Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo—with at least two other candidates (Vance Joseph, Callahan) now officially out. They’ll interview Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, respectively, over Zoom, and then, presumably, owner Michael Bidwill and new GM Monti Ossenfort will huddle and make their pick," said Breer.
"Why are they dragging it out if all this is being done virtually?
"Well, one theory I’ve heard is that they could be waiting for the Eagles coordinators to get through the Super Bowl. The Cardinals missed their window for first interviews with Steichen and Jonathan Gannon (Philly’s DC) during their GM search, and that meant they weren’t allowed to interview either guy during the window for second interviews over the Super Bowl bye week.
"The Cardinals haven’t yet put in requests for them, but there are ties here. My understanding is Bidwill and his group put a lot of work in on Steichen by calling around to research him early in the process. And Ossenfort’s actually built a relationship with Gannon, and those two have a close mutual friend in Texans GM Nick Caserio.
"Now, the Cards could certainly just pick a guy this week and be done with it. But if this drags into next weekend, that could be one reason why."
Bidwill certainly took the whole "cast a wide net" mantra to a new level, and you can't fault the Cardinals for doing their due diligence at this point in time.
The race to find a new leader is narrowing, although more slowly than some anticipated. It also may not be wrapped up if the Cardinals want to speak to anybody from Philadelphia or Kansas City.
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