Lovie Smith Running out of Head Coaching Options

The Buffalo Bills decided to go with Syracuse’s head coach Doug Marrone, which means Lovie Smith may be left without a job.

It looks like it’s the Arizona Cardinals or bust for Smith at this point as a head coach, but if he can convince owner Bill Bidwill that he deserves the job, then he can make that team relevant again, or just relevant period if you take away their Super Bowl run.

Smith would go into a great situation defensively where he can excel putting in his Tampa-2 with the players that are there. Daryl Washington leads a good front seven. The secondary is strong with Patrick Peterson. He’s the real deal at corner back and as a return guy. Maybe Smith would convert him into a wide receiver as well.

If Smith went to Arizona, would Brian Urlacher follow him to the dessert? It’s a question worth asking seeing as he was Smith’s biggest backer and played his college ball at New Mexico. I’m sure if the money is right, he’d consider it.

The question then becomes, how can he solve that anemic offense?

Obviously that team needs a better quarterback. Smith also wants to “get off the bus running” so he needs to find a way to make Beanie Wells effective which would then help the quarterback and setup the passing game. They still have one of the best wide receivers in Larry Fitzgerald and a couple young guys that can be nice complimentary pieces.

The pressure to win in Arizona is far less than it was with the Chicago Bears and that can serve as a good thing for Smith. He gets a second chance at being a head coach without having to worry about not getting the job done right away. Maybe this time Smith will get the offensive coordinator position right, that way he can concentrate on his defense.