Mike LaFleur wasn’t named Cardinals head coach until Feb. 1, which means he’s behind most other managers in building the team. But LaFleur thinks that could be a good thing.
LaFleur said it’s true that when LaFleur began his search for assistant coaches, many good assistant coaches already had jobs lined up for 2026, but he believes the late start gave him the opportunity to look at coaches he might not have otherwise considered.
advertise
“Every day in January and early February, someone was being eliminated,” LaFleur said. “But there’s a lot of good coaches out there, so you just have to go through the process. You lose one, but sometimes when you lose one, it’s probably the best thing that ever happens because you end up finding the next coach that’s a better fit for us. You’re going to learn something from some guys that you might not have interviewed. It’s a challenge, but I can flip that around and that’s actually a good thing.”
LaFleur said Nathaniel Hackett was the only offensive coordinator he wanted, and he spent some time getting to know current Cardinals defensive coordinator Nick Rallis and believed he was the best coach for the job. LaFleur said he is close to hiring his full staff. And he is an employee he likes.
