While the Arizona Cardinals are expected to make significant changes this offseason after a disappointing 2022 season, head coach Kliff Kingsbury made it clear he won’t leave voluntarily.
Before the Cardinals faced the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday Night Football, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Josh Weinfuss reported on the fractured relationship between Kingsbury and quarterback Kyler Murray. Part of the report detailed problems within the organization, including issues with the owner’s unwillingness to spend. Sources indicated that Kingsbury was “miserable” in Arizona with the possibility raised that he could resign.
- Kliff Kingsbury record: 28-35-1
Kingsbury addressed the report on Friday, telling reporters that he didn’t read the story. While he wouldn’t go into any detail about the claims made in it, the Cardinals’ coach made it clear he would not resign.
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“No. I haven’t seen that, but no.”
Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury on report he was considering stepping down after 2022 season
On the surface, quitting never made sense for the 43-year-old. Even after the Cardinals’ second-half collapse in the 2021 season followed by an ugly Wild Card Game loss to the Los Angeles Rams, Arizona signed him to a contract extension.
Turning in his resignation would mean allowing the Cardinals to avoid paying him the remainder of that salary on a contract that runs through 2027. While Kingsbury isn’t one of the highest-paid coaches in football, it would still have wiped away tens of millions of dollars in the years ahead.
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Kingsbury’s refusal to resign doesn’t mean he will return as head coach in 2023. The Cardinals are reportedly expected to part ways with general manager Steve Keim. Considering Arizona’s lack of success under Kingsbury and his fractured relationship with the franchise quarterback, it feels inevitable that the Cardinals will clean house.
While it’s certainly not the outcome Kingsbury wants, he will still get paid if the Cardinals fire him. It’s just another reason why, whether he returns in 2023 or not, quitting was never on the table.
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