FanPost

Year 2 for Ken Whisenhunt

 

As Ken Whisenhunt becomes no longer a rookie Coach what can the birds look forward to?  The outlook looks great for many reason beyond my explanation that I talk about in this Post.

-Hes done his dues.  This guy was once a TE for Georgia Tech, and was drafted in the 12th round by the Atlanta Falcons in 1985.  He graduated from Georgia Tech with a Civil Engineering degree; that speaks volumes about how smart this guy is.  In the NFL he played for Atlanta, Washington, and the Jets, he was know mostly for his blocking skills. After that he retired after 9 years in the NFL and started his coaching career.

-Coaching career.  His first job was with Vanderbilt as a special teams and TE coach.  Returned back to the NFL in 1997 with the Ravens as a TE coach then bounced around with the Browns and Jets before landing with the Steelers in 2001 as a TE coach.  He developed Mark Bruener and Jay Riemersma into good run blocking TE;  if you are a Steeler fan like myself, those two TE were older and no much was expected of them, however Whisenhunt did a phenomenal job.  Finally, Coach Coward gave him the chance to take over the offense and take over he did.

-Great Steeler OC.  He is most known for his trick play in the superbowl WR pass.  But those who followed the Steelers know this guy developed Big Ben just nicely.  Never putting to much pressure on him when he was a rookie and the team still went 15-1, one of the best records in a season history, and Whisenhunt was a huge part of that; by allowing Ben to get his experience needed as well as still winning football games. Also if you forgot, steelers won that superbowl so he has a ring on his finger.  He brings much needed experience and winning attitude to the birds.

-First year as a Cardinals coach was impressive.  He took a team who was 5-11 in 2006 to a respectable 8-8 last year. His line can easily become one of the best in 2008, drafting levi Brown was a god send but developing him with Russ Grimm is a bigger god send than that Cardinals realize.  Bring Russ Grimm to the Cardinals was one of the smartest things Whisenhunt could have done. Not only did he bring Russ Grimm to the birds but he brought a handful of players from the Steelers to bring a winning attitude to the locker room.  I believe that a lot of the Cardinals failure in the past had to do with the attitude they have in the locker room.  They went from not expecting much to where winning is no longer an option it is a Must.

I know there are many other reasons why Whisenhunt is going to direct this team in the right directions but those I posted above I feel are most important.  The Cardinals will be expected to win this year maybe not with all the people in the media but surly in the locker room and among the team winning should become a habit very soon.  A lot of that hangs on how the QB situation will unfold.  But if we base it on Whisenhunt history, the QB situation will unfold nicely this year and they will no longer be the losers of the NFC west and will be fighting for a playoff spot.  They have the talent in the skills postions as well as in the trenches so expecting a playoff berth and a winning season in 2008 is not out of the question, not even close.  So get fired up Cardinals nation this is the year that is long overdue.   

<em>This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Revenge of the Birds' (ROTB) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of ROTB's editors.</em>