| Dave McGinnis is a smart man. He’s
nobody’s fool. So why on earth would he go and do a silly thing like sign a
four-year contract that will keep him as the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals?
Doesn’t he know that the Cardinals franchise is a coach killer? This club, every
few years, identifies its next victim (read: coach), and proceeds to chew him up and spit
him out. Rarely are these brave men heard from again — at least as head coaches.
Vince Tobin? He could wind up in St. Louis as the Rams’ defensive coordinator next
season. But he shouldn’t count on getting another shot at a head-coaching job any
time soon. Buddy Ryan? He’s tending to his horses in Kentucky. Joe Bugel? He had to
wait several years for another shot at the top, with the Raiders, and that only lasted a
year.
So, again, what was McGinnis thinking?
I’ll tell you what he was thinking. He saw an opportunity to start over. He has a
four-year contract, and an understanding from the team owner that this monumental task of
turning around the Cardinals isn’t a one-year job.
McGinnis doesn’t expect the Cardinals to duplicate the Saints’ amazing
one-year turnaround. It’s just not in the cards. Instead, he sees a chance to slowly
build the Cardinals into a winner over a couple of seasons. It’s the only way it can
be done because of this team’s salary-cap situation.
McGinnis will mold the Cardinals into the type of team he wants, which intrigues me. He
is a fiery, emotional individual, and that’s how he expects his players to perform. I
think that can work on the football field.
"There’s going to be changes made, and some of these changes are going to
come fast and furious," McGinnis said.
Expect some of those changes to take place on the coaching staff. Offensive coordinator
Marc Trestman is as good as gone. He tried to change Jake Plummer’s playing style,
and the quarterback regressed.
The key for McGinnis will be to hire someone who can get Plummer back on track. Word
has it that former Redskins head coach Norv Turner is at the top of McGinnis’ list.
Another option is Geep Chryst, who is the Chargers offensive coordinator. Chryst is a
former Cardinals QB coach who had a close relationship with Plummer during their time
together.
McGinnis also has to find a way to fix the running game, which failed to materialize
despite spending the No. 7 overall draft pick on RB Thomas Jones. The defense? It’s a
mess. This team can’t stop the run or get pressure on the passer. That’s going
to have to be addressed to.
The prospects for success don’t appear very appealing at this point. But, with
time, I believe that McGinnis will be the guy who gets this ship righted.
The NFL is a funny sports league these days. Parity has made dramatic turnarounds more
common and swift. McGinnis at least has that on his side. |
