Sawt Falasteen - NFL Cardinals hire Rams' assistant LaFleur as head coach

LaFleur replaces Jonathan Gannon, who was fired last month after the Cardinals finished 3-14, missing the playoffs for the ninth time in 10 seasons.

"I couldn't be more fired up to become the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals," LaFleur said. "Having competed against them in the NFC so many times in recent years, I know the type of talent and toughness the team has and cannot wait to get to Arizona to hit the ground running."

LaFleur, whose older brother is Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur, had been the Rams offensive coordinator for three seasons and called plays in his two seasons as the New York Jets' offensive coordinator.

LaFleur, 39, becomes the 11th head coach for the Cardinals since their move from St. Louis to Arizona before the 1994 campaign.

"Mike has been around some of the best and brightest coaches in football and has been a key contributor to highly successful teams," Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort said. "He understands what winning football looks like and what it takes to achieve it.

"Mike is a strong communicator with a detail-oriented teaching style that has always gotten the best from his players and we are incredibly excited for him to bring that to the Cardinals."

LaFleur began his NFL coaching career under Kyle Shanahan in Cleveland and Atlanta before becoming Shanahan's passing game coordinator in San Francisco from 2017-2020 before joining the Jets.

"Mike LaFleur possesses all the traits necessary to lead this team to success," Cardinals owner Michael Bidwell said. "He's highly intelligent with an exceptionally sharp, creative football mind. Mike is also a dynamic and innovative leader."

O.Mousa--SF-PST