Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
New Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians did not waste a lot of time bringing in top talent to surround him on his coaching staff. The Cardinals announced they have hired three new coaches to fill the void left by the departed. Todd Bowles will be the new defensive coordinator, Harold Goodwin will be the offensive coordinator, and Tom Moore will be the assistant head coach/offense coordinator.
Arians is all about coaching. He believes it is up to the players to win the game and if they want to win, they will. Arians brought a lot of experience in with these three hires. Bowles has 13 years under his belt, and recently served as the Philadelphia Eagles‘ defensive coordinator for about half of the season.
The Cardinals have a great defense and a lot of fans were sad to see former DC Ray Horton go, but based on these hires, I would not be so sad. Like Ken Whisenhunt, Arians hired an offensive coordinator, Goodwin, but he will call his own plays. Goodwin coached the offensive line with the Indianapolis Colts last season and helped them put together a top-ten offense.
The assistant coach that everybody should be excited about is Tom Moore. He brings 34 years of NFL knowledge to the game and as an added bonus, he was Denver Broncos QB Peyton Manning‘s offensive coordinator while he was in Indy. His numbers with Peyton speak for themselves.
All three of these hires show that the Cardinals are ready to get back to coaching the players to bring the best out of them. Last season, fans got a feeling the players were not playing at the highest possible level. Arians brings the kind of energy that demands excellence from his players. It will be more exciting to watch as well.
Arians say he is going to throw the ball deep and stretch the defense. That was something the Cardinals seriously lacked this year. Moreover, he did not seem like he was too excited to work with QB Kevin Kolb, so I expect the team will be searching hard for a player that can stretch the vertical limits of opposing defenses. Next season will be exciting to watch, but don’t hold your breath for the playoffs – the NFC West is now the toughest division in football.
Follow Kase Brammer on Twitter @KBlive33
