Cardinals Finish Strong ... 'Whiz' Gets One More Chance!

I’ve gone on record several times over the years to share my thoughts on how mediocre of a head coach I believe Arizona Cardinals leader Ken Whisenhunt has been since taking the Cards’ job prior to the 2007 season, but I’ve got to give credit where credit is due.

While the Cardinals’ 8-8 record might look like a mediocre mark in which they did absolutely nothing special, the total opposite is true when you look at how Arizona closed out its 2011 regular season campaign.

The Cardinals closed out the regular season by winning seven of their final nine games while recording impressive wins over Philadelphia, Dallas and San Francisco along the way.

As I always say, I like to ‘keep it real’ and I’ve got to give credit where credit is due. Ken Whisenhunt deserves another season at the very least after getting his team to almost literally fight to the finish in 2011.

Niners Rule NFC Worst

NFC West The San Francisco 49ers got a rude awakening in their 16-6 Thanksgiving Day loss to Baltimore, but anyone that doesn’t think this team is for real had better think again.  Frisco is going to be a very tough out come playoff time for any team not named Green Bay.

I really like the enthusiastic Pete Carroll and I was impressed with the job he did in getting the team to 7-9 last season, not to mention the huge upset win they recorded over the Saints. Unfortunately, Carroll miscalculated very badly when he let Matt Hasselbeck go in favor of the incompetent Tavaris Jackson and equally-inept backup Charlie Whitehurst. Now, the Seahawks sit at an uninspiring 4-7 with five games left – and they still need a new quarterback in the worst way.

Maybe it’s just me, but suddenly, I’ve got the feeling that Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb, the Card’s big offseason free agent acquisition, is toast in the desert! The fact of the matter is that Arizona looked mostly clueless in going 1-6 through seven games under Kolb while actually looking competent in going 3-1 with unheralded second-year signal-caller John Skelton.

I don’t know how else to say it except to be brutally honest. If I’m the owner of the St. Louis Rams, I’m getting rid of head coach Steve Spagnuolo as soon as the clock strikes all zeroes in Seattle’s last game. The Rams – and ballyhooed quarterback Sam Bradford – have both taken some major steps backwards this season – and it’s clear that Spagnuolo knows nothing about coaching offense – or letting someone else do the job for him.