With the Arizona Cardinals 3-12 heading into Week 17, the expectation is that head coach Steve Wilks will be fired after his first season on the job. If some of the team’s most respected veterans are given a say, however, Wilks may get another shot.
Patrick Peterson, who has been with the Cardinals for all eight of his NFL seasons, was asked this week about reports that have indicated Wilks will be fired. The All-Pro cornerback said he is not anticipating a coaching change and threw his full support behind Wilks.
“I definitely hope those speculations are false, but at the end of the day, that’s something that’s out my control,” Peterson said, per Bob McManaman of the Arizona Republic. “But as players, we’re planning to have coach back next year.”
The Cardinals have scored the fewest points in the league and have the largest point differential in the league, but Wilks was not exactly expected to turn the team into a playoff contender in his first year. Even if a 3-12 record is more disappointing than Arizona’s brass anticipated, it seems clear that Wilks has not lost his locker room.
“It’s been a tough season for us, but we all love coach,” Peterson added. “He’s a heck of a motivator, just the way he’s able to get guys going for games and the messages that he sends across. … Just everything about coach, he’s a man’s man.”
Peterson is not the first Cardinals player to come out and support Wilks publicly, and that should bode well for his future with the team. The fact that star players want the coach to stick around following a terrible season says a lot.
