Bidwill's Whitewashing and Penny-Pinching Has Become a Disgrace for Cardinals
By Walter Mitchell
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote:
There is a warm tenacity and authenticity in Anthony Weaver that I believe is perfect for what the Cardinals players need right now and into the future.
I think it would be a particularly auspicious time for the Cardinals to hire a head coach of color, a former Notre Dame grad, seven-year NFL pro whom the Cardinals' players would be most apt to feel a very strong affinity for and connection with.
Back in 2023, after Michael Bidwill was snubbed by GM candidate Ian Cunningham (who just was hired recently by the Falcons as GM), whether it was a deliberate low-balling quid pro quo poisoned offer, or not, after the snubbing, Bidwill performed a wholesale whitewashing of the front office and coaching staff.
Adrian Wilson and Quentin Harris, who served as dutiful interim co-GMs after Steve Keim left the building in 2022 were jettisoned off in favor of Bidwill's decision to hire Monti Ossenfort as GM
Here --- in photos and titles --- is the so-called "Brain Trust" that Bidwill and Ossenfort assembled.
The 35 highest ranking and most visible employees for the Cardinals in 2025:
Common Denominator?
Check this further.
How about controlling the media?
Editorial Content
Darren Urban Dir, Ed Content/Sr. Writer 
Dani Sureck Reporter/Producer
Paul Calvisi Reporter/Host. 
Criag Grialou Digital Content Correspondent 
Zach Gershman Staff Writer/ReporterRadio/Podcasts
Jim Omohundro Director/Exec Producer
Cody Fincher Associate Producer
Dave Pasch Radio Play by Play
A.Q. Shipley Radio Color CommentatorSummary: 9 employees in Editorial Content and Radio/Podcasts and all 9 are white. Not a single person of color.
Executive Assistants
Michael Bidwill's Executive Assistant Department is a staff of 8 women, all of whom are white.
Note: you may recall from a few years back that some of the office assistants who had filed workplace misconduct grievances against Michael Bidwill were women of color.
The only person of color whom you will find among any of the highest-ranking employees is:
Shaun Mayo Chief People OfficerChief People Officer, what a bizarre title, eh? Supreme kudos to Officer Mayo, who by all accounts, is a highly respected and appreciated member of the staff.
A Chief People Officer (CPO) is a C-suite executive responsible for the entire employee lifecycle, strategically aligning the workforce with business goals. They focus on company culture, talent acquisition, employee experience, and leadership development. Often acting as a "people-first" leader, the CPO ensures employees are engaged, productive, and supported.
Key Responsibilities and Focus Areas
- Culture & Engagement: Shaping organizational culture, fostering belonging, and driving employee engagement.
- Talent Strategy: Managing recruitment, onboarding, performance management, and career development.
- Strategic Planning:Aligning human capital strategies with the overall business objectives.
- Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI): Implementing DEI initiatives and fostering a supportive, inclusive work environment.
- HR Transformation: Leveraging data for HR decisions, overseeing HR technology, and integrating AI for efficiency.
Curious that Michael Bidwill, at Mike LaFleur's introductory press conference made a special point of lauding Shaun Mayo's participation in hiring Mike LaFleur. Make of that as you will, but I believe Bidwill included his one top-35 black employee to provide the appearance that the Cardinals, as an organization, promote diversity.
The appearance of diverse hiring practices was yet another classic Bidwillean ruse.
Do you think the Cardinals' players color blind?
Over 70% of the Cardinals players on the 2025 roster are black.
Of the players Monti Ossenfort has drafted the past three years 23 of the 28 are black. That's 82%.
If you think the Cardinals' players are color blind when it comes to the Cardinals' kind of corporate whitewashing, you are either naive, apathetic or ignorant.
But hey look at this recent posting:
This #BlackHistoryMonth we honor and celebrate Black history, recognizing its impact, achievements, and lasting legacy.
What a freaking crock.
But wait, what about the other teams?
Top 35 ranking employees of color elsewhere in the NFC West:
Los Angeles Rams:
Reggie Scott Sr. VP of Sports Medicine and Performance
Arits Twymann VP Communications
Oracio Galindo Head of Emloyee Experience
Ray Farmer Senior Advisor to GM
Eric Dickerson VP Business Development
Aubrey Pleasant Asst Head Coach, PGC 
Nate Scheelhaase Offensive CoordinatorSan Francisco 49ers
Parag Marathe President of 49ers Enterprises
Harpreat Basran Chief People Officer
Jihad Beauchman Exec VP general Counsel
Tariq Ahmad VP Player Personnel
Keena Turner VP Senior Advisor to GM
Frank Gore Football Personnel Advisor
Austin Moss II Sr. Director Player Development
Raheem Morris Defensive CoordinatorSeattle Seahawks
Ed Goines Chief Legal Officer
Mario Bailey VP of Community Engagement
Sarita Carter VP Human Resources
Paimon Jaberi VP Business Strategies
Marissa John Vice President and Gen Counsel
Maurice Kelly Vice president Public Affairs
William Seguilla VP Football Finance
Karen Wilkins Mickey VP of Diversity
Aden Durde Defensive Coordinator2026 New Head Coach and Coordinators
Mike LaFleur Head Coach
Nathaniel Hackett Offensive Coordinator
Nick Rallis Defensive Coordinator
Michael Ghobrial Special Teams CoordinatorIt isn't confirmed yet but looking at a few names that have been interviewed for the #Cardinals DC role.
Seattle Seahawks DB/PGC Karl Scott --- #1 points allowed
Houston Texans DB Dino Vasso --- #2 points allowed
LA Rams Assistant HC/DB/PGC Aubrey Pleasant --- #10 points allowed
ARI Nick Rallis --- #29 points allowed
Nick Rallis' 2025 Defense
28.7 PPG Allowed (29th)
126.9 Rush YPG Allowed (25th)
230.8 Pass YPG Allowed (24th)
19 Total Takeaways (T-21st)
202 Quarterback Pressures (20th)
30 Sacks (T-30th)🏈 Overall PFF (31st)
🏈 Tackling (32nd)
1. He was casting the widest of nets - total crock
2. He was considering hiring a black head coach (2 finalists) - total crock
3. He was offering Klint Kubiak way more millions than the Raiders did plus a lucrative budget for coaching staff hirings --- total complete Sean Payton type of crock
4. He was considering hiring a black defensive coordinator from one of the top defenses in the NFL - total crock teaser
The plan all along was to act like he was shooting for the moon in trying to woo Klint Kubiak to Arizona, knowing that there was no chance, and that Mike LaFleur, the fans' overwhelming favorite, was, as Bidwill said, "our guy all along."
And now it has become crystal clear why Bidwill was locked in on LaFleur. Not only would it excite the fans to get an apprentice from the Shanhan/McVay trees, but LaFleur was obviously amenable enough to agree to keep the majority of Monti Ossenfort's and Jonathan Gannon's failure of a staff, including being willing to accept Nick Rallis as his DC. A DC that LaFleur's Rams dropped 82 points (41.0 ppg) and 925 total yards (462.5) on this season.
Think about that. LaFleur was under the impression that the Cardinals were missing a bunch of starters on defense in those games and offered that as an excuse on Burns and Gambo --- but it was a lie --- 9/11 of the Cardinals' original defensive starters started both those games.
The fact that Mike LaFleur was unable to sign Rams' defensive passing game coordinator Aubrey Pleasant as his slam-dunk DC pretty much says it all about how powerless LaFleur has been in the DC search.
Everyone has understood that the Cardinals' 2026 DC appointment was the MOST important coaching staff decision.
The move to retain Nick Rallis is so Bidwill and Ossenfort. These moves are not about putting the players in the best possible hands to win games, it's more about pinching pennies at all costs.
This was a perfectly predictable Bidwill type reaction to having just been totally played by the Los Angeles Rams, who in retaliation for Bidwill poaching OC Mike LaFleur, hired Kliff Kingsbury as an offensive advisor --- not as OC, but as offensive advisor --- so that the Rams could ensure that for this season Bidwill will be forced to pay Kingsbury somewhere in the neighborhood of $6M while coaching against the Cardinals for the Rams.
How forked up is that?
By retaining Rallis, Bidwill took the cheapest way out, because now he doesn't have to pay the balance of Rallis' salary on top of Kingsbury's and Gannon's balances --- and with Rallis still on board, Bidwill can keep a number of the low salaried assistants.
What kind of message does Bidwill's retaining of Rallis send to the football team?
The message is an acceptance of utter failure that smacks of "more of the same."
Think of what Bidwill did to the players by parading such feigned interest in Robert Saleh, Anthony Campanile, Anthony Weaver, Raheem Morris, Jesse Minter, Jeff Hafley, Vance Joseph, Chris Shula, Ron Rivera, Dino Vasso, Aubrey Pleasant, Charlie Bullen and Karl Scott before their eyes --- and after all of that --- POOF ---Nick Rallis "was our guy all along."
There is no question that Bidwill heard the din of Cardinals' podcasters and petulant fans who were campaigning to get Drew Petzing fired even before the 2025 season began.
Because look at it this way --- all Bidwill and Ossenfort actually did was get rid of Gannon to hire Drew Petzing's replacement. Much of the rest of the staff remains the same, at the same lowball salaries. Even struggling and inexperienced (NFL-wise) offensive line coach Justin Frye was retained.
Here's the kicker --- and ultimate irony --- the Detroit Lions who boasted the plum OC job opening of this off-season, who never once expressed an interest in Mike LaFleur, on January 26th, hired Drew Petzing. Dan Campbell came to the conclusion that Drew Petzing was a better candidate for the Lions' offense than any other, including Mike McDaniel.
On February 1, the Cardinals hired Mike LaFleur. For those of you who might think the Lions could not hire LaFleur due to it being a lateral OC move, that is no longer the case for non playcalling OCs.
But wait, Michael Bidwill is winning leadership awards, like this one that was presented to him in Santa Clara before the Super Bowl by Anquan Boldin and his Players Coalition organization, which is a non-profit cause for putting an end to social and racial injustices.
When one pulls back the curtain on this charade, it appears for all intents and purposes to be yet another classic Bidwill quid pro quo. Now that Bidwill was honored by Anquan Boldin for a "Sport for Impact Legacy Award," one can expect that the once uber-talented, embittered, trade-demanding Pro Bowl wide receiver will be inducted into the Cardinals' Ring of Honor sometime soon. Anquan has been making it clear in recent years that he would like to be bestowed that honor by the Cardinals, the team that drafted him.
One has to hope that Anquan Boldin hasn't realized the extent to which Michael Bidwill has been whitewashing the organization. Maybe he too has been duped by Bidwill's ruses when the reality is that for the last two hiring cycles, Bidwill has been using qualified black front office, head coach and coordinator candidates as mere props.
One has to feel very sorry for the Cardinals' players. By now they know and understand the score. And today they now know, just as they knew last year, that Bidwill and Ossenfort have given them no realistic chance to compete in the NFC West.
One can imagine that many of them were at least excited to think about being coached by Anthony Weaver, Raheem Morris, Karl Scott, Dino Vasso or Aubrey Pleasant. That could have made them feel a new sense of hope and direction in the organization.
But as of today, those hopes have been dashed, and recoiling fans are already calling for another 1st year head coach tanking, this time for Arch Manning.
How ironic that reality could turn out be when Arch Manning announces, per his and his family's wishes, he'd rather go back to Texas than be drafted by the Cardinals.
You see, Bidwill has not only alienated his players and so many Cardinals' former season ticket holders --- he's alienated the entire NFL world.
In a current tumultuous world of alienations, Bidwill is a tour de force.
The other sad part in all of this is despite only being on the job for nearly two weeks, Mike LaFleur has already compromised his credibility as a legitimate NFL head coach.
This 2026 coaching staff is Michael Bidwill's and Monti Ossenfort's. And Mike LaFleur is accepting it, like Wilks, and Kliff had to.
Bottom Line - How has the "Brain Trust" of the Cardinals' whitewashed front office and staff done the past three years?
15-36 overall (,290)
2-15 in NFC West (.170)
Ticket sales plummeting
Offense needs silent snap counts at home
Overwhelming number of injuries
Players on defense resigned to losing
The people being screwed the most: players and fans
and the beat goes on...
ReplyDeleteThe whole thing just smells like three day old fish
And B Baker knew this months ago and should be asking for a trade. No one with a half of brain would want to work for this jack wagon, Lafluer knows he isn’t qualified for this trainwreck but with his connections in the league and the fact KK and Gannon got jobs after flaming out here, he figures it’s worth it for the experience. No way Manning will come here unless Mikey sells Peyton 10 % of ownership which is as likely as Taylor Swift making a RocknRoll album. Boldin just like C Campbell are playing Mike for the ring of honor, I don’t begrudge them.
ReplyDeleteAs for Nick Rallis, its a little head scratching because MLF called plays against Rallis in Week 18 with little resistance. One would think that MLF has observed Rallis schemes over the last 3 years and likes something or sees potential? It is an underwhelming hire for sure but I don't think that they are done yet filling out the staff and should look to strengthen the coaching pedigree in the front 7 and secondary.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure I can buy the argument that MLF was being pressured to retain JG's old coordinators and I know that MLF's biggest #1 mentor, his big bro Matt LaFleur, would not encourage MLF to appease Mike B by keeping the old staff in place. The LaFleur's don't strike me as BS type of people. If during the interview, Monti and Mike were like "We would appreciate you taking a long look at some of our existing staff" and in MLF's mind he did not believe in them, I don't think he would accept mediocrity given his background in working in high level offensive staffs and seeing the level of coaching required. I just think that he sees something in them because after his stint with the Jets you know that MLF knows this might be one of his last big chances.
As to the front office adversity topic, I think we can theorize all day but unless someone has inside information from within the organization, I say "who knows"! Every corporate organization has elements of favoritism but ultimately the NFL has no control over final hiring decisions within an organization, the Rooney rule is like a traffic jam, you race around it then go back to driving 20mph over the speed limit!
Great breakdown, Walter. This is an issue that is out there for all to see, but has had zero media coverage. Hopefully your work helps bring some attention to it.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, the NFL just prevailed in arbitration such that the NFLPA can no longer publicize its ownership report cards. Gee, I wonder where Bidwill fell on that issue? Unfortunately for him, we already know how players are treated by this organization. Retaining Nick Rallis only further emphasizes the gap between our club and our NFC West competition.
I found this video to be interesting. The guy says fans want to win as many games as possible but todays owners want to make as much money as possible and grow their team globally. Everything is moving towards a pay-per-view type system. The league is placing more games behind paywalls like Peacock and Netflix.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAJH7Bx-BV4
I told myself it couldn’t get worse. Then they handed the franchise to another clueless, overmatched coaching staff and called it a plan. It’s not rebuilding—it’s ritualized incompetence. For so many, too many, seasons my complete disgust for this organization has made me a hater to the point my only hope this iteration of failure becomes the all time standard for the lall time universally accepted laughing stock of all sports franchises. People in every walk of life in every circumstance of man made disaster will no longer use the term “cluster fuck” or “FUBO” but use the universal term “Got Bidwilled.”
ReplyDeleteMaybe the reason there are no black athletes in the organization is they have too much pride to work for a Bidwill product.
How the front office could think keeping Rallis on staff has a benefit hasn't been paying attention. Most fans would prefer a JUCO coach than watch another year's installment of his defensive "philosophies". I say philosophies because we have yet see anything that borders on a xonoetebt defense since he has been a play caller. They would have been better hiring a nobody because we would have more optimism in that than Rallis. Way to fill the glass half up with LaFleur only to dump it back out as so, as Rallis steps on the field.
ReplyDeleteAnyone really hocked by the complete and total incompetence they hired? The retention of Rallis following the previous coaching hires tells the world and their customer base that ownership does not give a shit about what anyone thinks and less about improvement and winning. If this franchise could put a team on the field without a coaching staff, it would.
ReplyDeleteAll of the Doctor’s write ups are excellent. He is the Ernest Hemingway of sports commentary in prose. With that said why would anyone think our QB for the last 7 years could have done any better than he did? He was slightly under a 500 record and with the last group of lackeys, without him, the team went a whopping 2 and 20. I will always think the Little Big Man did the best he could with the worst run franchise in major leagues sports. I feel really bad for the little appreciation he is given by Cardinal fans. He will be missed for many seasons to come.
ReplyDelete