Report: Bruce Arians planning to step away from football after season

The possibility that Sunday’s game could be Bruce Arians’ last one as the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals has become very real.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that Arians is likely to step away from the game of football following Week 17, though he has not yet informed the Cardinals of his plans.

A highly-criticized report from earlier in the week claimed Arians and the Cardinals have mutually agreed to part ways. Arians later said any talk of him having made up his mind already is “fake news.”

Arians, 65, has had numerous health scares in recent years. The Cardinals could be entering a rebuilding phase if Larry Fitzgerald and/or Carson Palmer choose to retire, and it’s unclear if Arians would want to stick around for that. Arians told Ian Rapoport of NFL Media on Saturday night that he has not made up his mind yet and that Arizona has a “hell of a team” coming back in 2018.

The 7-8 Cardinals will close out their season with a game against the Seahawks in Seattle on Sunday. They have had a disappointing year, but Arians recently said that only makes him more eager to keep coaching.