MILWAUKEE (105.7 FM The Fan) -- Former Green Bay Packers head coach Mike McCarthy would be interested in the Arizona Cardinals job, according to a report by NBC's Peter King.
The Cardinals (3-12) have struggled under first-year head coach Steve Wilks, who is expected to be fired next week after the NFL regular season concludes.
McCarthy was fired after nearly 13 seasons in Green Bay following a Dec. 2 loss to the Cardinals at Lambeau Field. The Cardinals also beat McCarthy's Packers twice in the playoffs, both times in overtime: 51-45 after the 2009 season, 26-20 to end the 2015 season.
Speculation had McCarthy as a lead candidate for the New York Jets job, assuming head coach Todd Bowles is let go. McCarthy's decision to pursue the Cardinals opening could include that working for the Bidwell family ownership in Arizona is a better prospect than dealing with the Jets' unpredictable owner Woody Johnson.
The 2018 season has been a disaster for the Cardinals front office. Cardinals GM Steve Keim signed veteran quarterback Sam Bradford then only used him for three games, paying him $13 million. Hiring Wilks as the new head coach has not worked out. And Keim was arrested last summer for "extreme intoxication" in a DUI charge. So there could be a change there. Would Arizona hire Eliot Wolf away from the Cleveland Browns to take over for Keim at GM? Wolf, the son of former Packers GM Ron Wolf, was passed over for the Packers GM job last year in favor of Brian Gutenkunst. Wolf then joined other former Packers executives in Cleveland.
A move to Arizona would be an opportunity for McCarthy to groom quarterback Josh Rosen, the Cardinals' first-round draft pick in 2018. The former UCLA signal caller has many similar traits to Aaron Rodgers as an accurate passer and heady player.
McCarthy also loves to golf, so a move to Phoenix could be far more favorable than relocating to somewhere in New Jersey with the Jets.
