With Andy Reid looking more and more likely to get hired in Kansas City, the Arizona Cardinals have turned their search elsewhere and it's to a familiar face.
According to numerous sources who spoke to ESPN.com and NFL.com, the Cardinals have asked for and received permission to interview Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Todd Haley for their head coaching position.
Kent Somers of The Arizona Republic first reported the news about Haley, while NFL.com's Ian Rapoport confirmed Thursday through a Pittsburgh Steelers source that the Cardinals requested permission to speak to the coach. NFL.com's Albert Breer later reported the Steelers had granted the Cardinals permission for the interview.
Haley is the former head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs and was offensive coordinator for the Cardinals when the team went to the Super Bowl in 2008. According to ESPN, Haley has a good relationship with Cardinals president Michael Bidwill and is well-liked by the organization.
Following Black Monday when seven coaches were fired, it appeared that former Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid was the favorite to take the Cardinals job since a former draft pick of his, quarterback Kevin Kolb, was traded to Arizona a couple years ago. According to reports, Reid is close to a deal with Haley's former team to become head coach of the Chiefs.
The Cardinals have already met with other candidates and plan to interview others later dur9ing the weekend. The team interviewed its own defensive coordinator Ray Horton for the position, while Reid was scheduled to interview Thursday. The Cardinals also will meet with Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy over the weekend since his team has a bye in the first round of the playoffs.
Both Horton and McCoy have been targeted by other teams, with Horton already interviewing with the Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns. Lovie Smith is also a possible candidate, but the team has not publically said they will meet with him yet. The Cardinals also fired general manager Rod Graves and will need to fill that position sometime in the future as well.
Horton spoke to reporters about his formal interview with Arizona from Wednesday and said that he was not worried about being seen as a "defensive coach" because he is a coordinator.
"I think I'm a coach of men," Horton said to ESPN.com. "I talk about a plan to build a team. I don't talk about 'Hey, I can build this offense or this defense and good luck with the rest of the team.' Whether you're an offensive coach, you've got to have a defensive guy who can do something on that side. It all blends together. I think that's a zero issue."
Bidwell has said the Cardinals will take their time with the hiring and that the process "is not going to move at lightning speed. And you don't want it to," he said, "because you learn a lot during your due diligence period."
The Cardinals are searching for a new coach after firing Ken Whisenhunt, who went 45-51 in six seasons with Arizona. The team is coming off of a disappointing 2012 campaign that saw the Cardinals lose 11 of the final 12 games to finish 5-11. The Cardinals got off to a promising 4-0 start, but lost the next nine games in a row before defeating the Detroit Lions 38-10 on Dec. 16.
The losing streak was made to look even worse when the Cardinals lost 58-0 to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 15.The Cardinals dealt with weak quarterback play all season, which affected the production of Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona's best player.
Haley would seem like a good fit with the Cardinals since the team had such success while he was there, making the Super Bowl in 2008. He worked well with Fitzgerald and would be the offensive-minded guy the Cardinals are looking for. The team was ranked second to last in the NFL in scoring in 2012 and gained only 75 rushing yards per game as one of the worst offenses in the league.
During that run in 2008, Haley led a Cardinals offense that was one of the best in the league, ranking third in scoring with 26 points per game and fourth in total offense, gaining over 360 total yards per game. Although the team was just 9-7, the Cardinals won the division and went on to score more than 30 points in each of its three playoff games. Arizona is desperate to return to some form of that offense after a miserable 2012 campaign.
Following the Super Bowl run, Haley became head coach of the Chiefs, where he led the team to the playoffs in his second season after winning the AFC West with a 10-6 record. Things did not go as well the following year and Haley was fired after the team went 5-8 in 2011.
Haley is known to have a fiery personality and can be aggressive with his team, but it often gets results, including from players like Kurt Warner and Fitzgerald. That type of attitude could be exactly what the Cardinals need to get back on track.
Haley came to the Steelers in February to take over the offensive coordinator position and has been criticized by quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for some of his play-calling. This season the Steelers are ranked 14th in passing yards and 26th in rushing yards with 96 per game.