The final head coaching vacancy of the 2026 NFL cycle has been filled - and the Arizona Cardinals are turning to a familiar face from within the NFC West. Former Rams offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur is set to become the Cardinals' next head coach, bringing a decade-plus of NFL experience and a proven offensive pedigree to a franchise in desperate need of a reset.
LaFleur has spent the past three seasons as Sean McVay’s right-hand man in Los Angeles, helping engineer the league’s most explosive offense in 2025. The Rams led the NFL in both total offense (394.6 yards per game) and scoring (30.5 points per game), with veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford putting together a season for the ages - 46 touchdown passes, 4,707 yards, and just eight interceptions. That kind of production doesn’t happen without a sharp offensive mind calling the shots, and LaFleur played a key role in creating mismatches and maximizing the talent around him.
Now, he takes over a Cardinals team that’s been stuck in the NFL’s basement for the better part of four years. Arizona has lost at least 13 games in three of the last four seasons and is tied with the Titans for the league’s worst record (19-49) since 2022.
Jonathan Gannon, who went 15-36 over three seasons, is out. He’s since landed in Green Bay as the Packers’ new defensive coordinator.
LaFleur’s résumé is built on more than just his Rams tenure. He started in Cleveland as an intern back in 2014, then spent time with the Falcons and 49ers in various offensive roles, including a four-year stint in San Francisco as passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach. He later followed Robert Saleh to New York, where he ran the Jets’ offense for two seasons before landing in L.A.
The numbers during his time with the Rams speak for themselves. Under LaFleur, L.A. ranked in the top six in nearly every major offensive category:
- Win percentage: .627 (T-6th)
- Points per game: 25.3 (6th)
- Yards per play: 5.7 (6th)
- Total yards per game: 361.8 (6th)
- Passing yards per game: 244.9 (5th)
That kind of consistent output is exactly what the Cardinals are hoping to replicate - but LaFleur’s challenge in Arizona will be a steep one.
There are, however, some intriguing building blocks already in place. Tight end Trey McBride has emerged as one of the league’s premier pass-catchers at the position, coming off a season with 126 receptions, 1,239 yards, and 11 touchdowns.
Rookie wideout Marvin Harrison Jr., the No. 4 overall pick, has lived up to the hype early, tallying 103 catches for 1,493 yards and 12 scores in just 29 career games. And don't sleep on Michael Wilson, who quietly posted three 115-yard games this year and continues to be one of the most underappreciated wideouts in the league.
Still, the biggest question LaFleur and the Cardinals face this offseason is at quarterback.
Kyler Murray, once the face of the franchise and a former No. 1 overall pick, played only five games in 2025 due to a foot injury. Veteran Jacoby Brissett stepped in and, by most measures, ran the offense more efficiently.
While Murray is under contract through at least 2027, his future in Arizona is anything but guaranteed. Since 2022, he ranks 26th in win percentage and 29th in yards per attempt among quarterbacks with at least 25 starts.
He’s struggled to stay healthy, playing more than 12 games in a season just once over the past four years.
The Cardinals haven’t won a playoff game since 2015 and have made the postseason only once since then. LaFleur inherits a roster that’s short on recent success but not without potential. His task now is to bring the offensive firepower we saw in L.A. to the desert - and to help a franchise that’s been spinning its wheels finally find some traction.
There’s work to do in Arizona, no question. But if LaFleur can bring even a fraction of the Rams’ offensive magic with him, the Cardinals might finally be ready to turn the corner.