Lions' Mike Disner Allegedly Part of Cardinals' 2018 Burner Phone Scheme
Detroit Lions Chief Operating Officer Mike Disner has been accused of involvement in an alleged burner phone scheme, run by the Arizona Cardinals in 2018.
According to a court filing obtained by Compare.bet, Disner allegedly gave burner phones to prominent members of the organization to communicate with suspended general manager Steve Keim.
At the time, Keim was suspended for driving under the influence and suspended five weeks. The suspension prohibited him from communicating with the team.
The court filing, which was filed by former Cardinals executive Terry McDonough, alleges that Disner was responsible for distributing phones to prominent members of the staff for the purpose of communicating with the GM.
The report shows that McDonough provided photos of his alleged burner phone in the filing.
There were contacts labeled with the letters 'K', 'D', 'W' and 'C', aligning with the last names of Keim, Disner, head coach Steve Wilks and vice president of football operations and facilities Matt Caracciolo.
According to the Associated Press, Cardinals' attorneys responded to McDonough's claim by stating that the phones had been "distributed after Keim's suspension by a senior football executive who is no longer with the team."
Disner was the Cardinals' VP of football administration at the time. He spent six seasons with Arizona, leaving at the conclusion of the 2018 campaign to join the Lions.
He began his tenure with Detroit as the vice president of football administration. In May, 2022, he was promoted to chief operating officer.
"Mike Disner, obviously he's C.O.O. now, but he still doesn't forget his roots of where he came from. And he was also integral in this process," Holmes said in his introductory comments to reporters at the annual owners meetings.
Disner has also been instrumental recently in repairing the team's relationship with Pro Football Hall of Fame receiver Calvin Johnson.
"I think we're having some good conversations," Johnson recently told Jim Rome during a radio interview. "Mike Disner, over there with the Lions, he's back in town. I feel like he's going to make the effort to bring the two of us together, get us back on the same page. I'm excited about that. I'm excited about him actually reaching out and putting the effort forward to try to make that happen."
