CARDINALS Arizona Cardinals HC history suggests 4 coaches to be next head coach If we look at the Cardinals' history with hiring head coaches, four guys stand out this time around. Portrait of Jess RootJess Root Cardinals Wire Updated Jan. 22, 2026, 10:48 p.m. MT

The Arizona Cardinals have had a bit of a pattern in the way they hire new head coaches. Since they moved to Arizona, they have alternated between hiring coaches with significant head-coaching experience and guys doing the job for the first time.

It is uncanny.

Cardinals history hiring head coaches since coming to Arizona Their first head-coaching hiring in Arizona was in 1990, They fired Gene Stallings in 1989. He previously had been a head coach in the college ranks at Texas A&M.

Joe Bugel replaced him with no experience. It has gone back and forth since then with one excpetion.

Need a news break? Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more! 1990 - Joe Bugel, no head-coaching experience 1994 - Buddy Ryan, previous NFL head coach 1996 - Vince Tobin, no head-coaching experience 2001 - Dave McGinnis, was Cardinals' interim head coach in 2000 for nine games 2004 - Dennis Green, previous NFL head coach 2007 - Ken Whisenhunt, no head-coaching experience 2013 - Bruce Arians, was interim head coach in 2012 for 12 games 2018 - Steve Wilks, was a head coach at a D-II school, never in FBS or NFL 2019 - Kliff Kingsbury, head-coaching experience in college (FBS) 2023 - Jonathan Gannon, no head-coaching experience That pattern would suggest the Cardinals' next hire will have been a head coach before.

What does that mean?

Which candidates have head-coaching experience? The two finalists the Cardinals wanted to interview a second time who were hired elsewhere were previous head coaches.

New Tennessee Titans head coach Robert Saleh was the head coach for the New York Jets previously. New Miami Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley was Boston College's head coach.

Of the candidates the Cardinals have considered, these are the previous head coaches:

Vance Joseph Raheem Morris Arthur Smith Matt Nagy Does this mean the Cardinals will hire one of these guys? History says so.

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