Jimmy Conzelman, who led his Chicago club to the 1947 NFL Championship in his second term as the team's head coach, was the last head coach to lead the Cardinals to a championship. His first three seasons were plagued by subpar results, with his Cardinals winning just eight games. However, in 1949 they captured the NFL title with a 7-3 record, including victories over Detroit and Washington. Conzelman stayed with the team after it moved to St. Louis for the 1952 season and retired as head coach at the age of 49. He died in a car accident in 1955.
Conzelman was born on January 4, 1890 in Cleveland, Ohio. He graduated from Harvard University in 1911 and immediately joined the United States Army Corps of Engineers as a lieutenant. Conzelman served in France during World War I and was given the rank of captain by the time he returned home in 1919.
After leaving the army, Conzelman became an assistant football coach at Harvard under George Preston Marshall, who would later become known as the "Father of American Football." When Marshall left Harvard to take over the Chicago Bears in 1930, Conzelman followed him to Chicago. There he helped the Bears win two NFL championships in 1934 and 1935 before moving on to become the head coach of the Cardinals in 1946.
There are 40 head coaches. Since the organization's inception as a professional team in 1920, the Cardinals have had 40 head coaches; fourteen of the team's coaches are former Cardinals players. Only Ernie Nevers and Jimmy Conzelman have coached the team for more than one season. Both men were fired after the 1972 season.
The most recent coach to be hired was Steve Wilks, who was hired on January 14, 2019. He was released by the Panthers after only one season where he compiled a 6-46 record.
Before that, on January 8, 2019, the Cardinals announced they had hired Anthony Lynn from the NFL's Carolina Panthers as their new head coach. He will be introduced at a press conference on January 14.
Cardinals owner/president Michael Bidwill said in a statement: "We are excited to hire a leader who has demonstrated an ability to develop young talent and win games at both the college and pro levels. Anthony is a winner who will bring energy to our community that we have not seen since John Glenn retired two years ago."
Glenn died in December 2016 at the age of 95. He was the last surviving member of the original Cardinals roster (with the exception of quarterback Johnny Mack Brown).
The club only won five games, failing to improve on their prior record of 9-7. This was the team's third consecutive season without making the playoffs. The Cardinals sacked head coach Jim Hanifan the following season after finishing last after a 3-1 start. Tony La Russa had been serving as an assistant under Hanifan but was given his first full-time coaching position with the Cardinals.
He would go on to become one of the most successful managers in MLB history, leading the Cardinals to six World Series titles during his 22 seasons at the helm of the club.
La Russa took over for Hanifan who had a 103-94 record over two seasons as the Cardinals' manager. The team made the playoffs both years but lost in the first round each time. After losing the first three games of the 1984 World Series to the Boston Red Sox, La Russa engineered one of the greatest comebacks in baseball history by leading the Cardinals to seven straight wins to win the series. He was named the National League Manager of the Year for his work with this team.
La Russa managed the Cardinals for twelve seasons and finished with a 327-378 record. He led the team to the postseason eight times, including six World Series appearances, four of which resulted in victories. He was fired by owner Bill DeWitt Jr. after the 1992 season and replaced by former Cardinal Joe Mantepenicolas.
Five previous coaches have taken the Cardinals to the playoffs, including Don Coryell, Jim Hanifan, Vince Tobin, Ken Whisenhunt, and Bruce Arians, and they got to the Super Bowl in 2009.. Coaches.
| Name | Arnie Horween* | |
|---|---|---|
| Regular season | L | 8 |
| T | 1 | |
| Win% | .619 | |
| Playoffs | GC | — |
Bill Belichick is the NFL's longest-tenured active head coach. With 31 playoff coaching triumphs, he also retains the record. Carroll, Pete (September 15, 1951-Present) and Shanahan, Mike (July 30, 1983-Present).
Belichick joined the New England Patriots in 2000 as their 27th coach in team history. The previous year they had their first losing season since 1993. They have not had a losing season since.
He has won two Super Bowl titles (constant pain from mouthpiece forced him to work with one tooth and one jaw injury that required three screws and four plates to be inserted) and has lost two (one in his first season and one in his second season).
His overall record is 172-92-1 (.610).
He has been nominated for the Coach of the Year award each season except 2003 when the Patriots did not make the playoffs. He has also been voted the league's best coach by his peers six times (2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2013).
Before coming to New England, Belichick served as the defensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns from 1995 to 2000. He replaced Bill Parcells who took over as Miami Dolphins head coach after 11 seasons with the Patriots.
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