Mike Kafka was a big part of what fueled the New York Giants‘ turnaround last season – and now he’s a finalist for the Arizona Cardinals head coaching job.
The 35-year-old reportedly is interviewing with the Cardinals for a second time today.
While it’s unclear if Kafka will wind up being the guy it hires – there’s clearly some serious interest.
The Cardinals will also interview Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo for its vacant head coaching job this week, according to reports.
After last a disappointing 2022 season, the Cardinals fired Kliff Kingsbury.
The team finished with just four wins after going 11-6 the year before.
But hiring Kafka could be big for the offense and quarterback Kyler Murray.
The offensive-minded coach was key in helping develop the league’s best Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City.
He served as the Chief’s quarterback coach and passing game coordinator.
Then eventually, Kafka joined Brian Daboll’s staff with the Giants as offensive coordinator for the 2022 season.
And he proved that his work with Mahomes wasn’t a fluke, as he took the Giants near dead-last offense in 2021 to 18th in total yards.
The play of quarterback Daniel Jones improved significantly despite the lack of wide receiver talent around him.
Jones threw for more than 3,200 yards with 15 touchdown passes compared to just 2,428 and 10 the year before.
Kafka also turned him into more of a running quarterback, as he had more than 700 yards rushing last year compared with only 298 the previous season.
While Kafka would be missed with the Giants, the fan base has to trust Daboll to find the right replacement.
Daboll would likely want someone similar who runs the spread offense.
But of course, we’ll have to see if Jones returns and if the Giants can improve the offense around him.
SNY’s Connor Hughes reports that Jones is worth between $35 and $37 million.
If the Giants can’t reach a deal in the near future, it will likely place the franchise tag on him, which would reportedly pay Jones more than $32 million in 2023.
It remains to be seen if Jones can continue to improve after having a breakout season in his 2022 campaign.
Also, the Giants are in danger of losing defensive coordinator Wink Martindale.
He is reportedly one of the frontrunners for the Indianapolis Colts head coaching job.
