ARIZONA CARDINALS

Arizona Cardinals coach nearly cut player on field, in front of entire team

Sep 5, 2013, 4:49 PM | Updated: 9:25 pm

Follow @theAdamGreenPresented By...

Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians means business.

Don’t believe it? Well, check out this story by NFL writer Peter King, where he notes that the first-year coach took umbrage with receiver Robert Gill breaking a team rule.

The rule? No tackling.

According to King, early during OTAs, Gill brought down cornerback Patrick Peterson after the defender intercepted a pass. The Pro Bowler suffered a sprained ankle on the play, which infuriated the head coach.

Arians was hotter than a Phoenix summer as he watched Peterson, a Pro Bowler and one of the team’s best players, lay on the ground after injuring an ankle on the play. Finally, he sent Gill to the locker room with no indication of what would happen next. Overnight, he decided he would cut the undrafted rookie, but not by calling him into his office, as most coaches would do. Instead he gathered the team—and Gill—and told them what he was about to do.

“I told the players this is the etiquette, and if you break the etiquette I’ve got to let you go,” Arians recalled during training camp. “He tackled Patrick, Patrick sprained an ankle, I’m a man of my word on that. I felt bad for the kid, but he just flat broke all the etiquette rules. I told him right there, ‘I have to let you go.’ ”

The players sat slack-jawed.

Of course, Arians did not cut Gill — at least, not until late August — but the point was made: What coach wants, coach gets.

“It got guys’ attention,” says Pro Bowl wideout Larry Fitzgerald. “He was about to cut him in front of the team. I’ve never seen anything like that before. A lot of guys were like, There’s a new sheriff in town, and his pistol is out and he’s not playing.

How Arians’ approach will translate to the field in games that counts remains to be seen, but we’ll get our first glimpse of it Sunday as the Cardinals visit the St. Louis Rams for the regular season opener.

Presented By
Western Governors University

Arizona Cardinals

Desmond Ridder runs the rock against Houston...

Tyler Drake

Desmond Ridder eager to remind fellow Cardinals QB Clayton Tune about college wins

Cardinals quarterback Desmond Ridder may not know Kyler Murray just yet, but he and Clayton Tune go way back.

17 hours ago

LSU's Malik Nabers, a top NFL Draft prospect...

Kevin Zimmerman

NFL Draft: Malik Nabers to visit Arizona Cardinals after LSU pro day, per report

Top NFL Draft receiver prospect Malik Nabers will reportedly visit with the Arizona Cardinals after the LSU Tigers' pro day.

21 hours ago

Desmond Ridder looks to pass...

Tyler Drake

QB1 or not, Desmond Ridder keeping starter mentality with Cardinals

New Cardinals QB Desmond Ridder is focused on using the good and the bad from his first two seasons rather than listening to outside chatter.

2 days ago

Jonathan Gannon and Kyler Murray look on...

Tyler Drake

Cardinals’ Jonathan Gannon: Kyler Murray’s ‘best football is ahead of him’

Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon believes Kyler Murray will continue taking the necessary steps forward with a full offseason of work.

2 days ago

Kyler Murray chats with Jonathan Gannon...

Arizona Sports

Arizona Cardinals will face ‘really good’ AFC opponent for joint preseason practices

The Arizona Cardinals expect to hold joint practices in the preseason against a really good AFC opponent, in the words of Jonathan Gannon.

2 days ago

Patriots and Cardinals kick off return in 2020...

Associated Press

NFL owners approve new kickoff rules for 2024

NFL kickoff rules will take on a hybrid approach similar to the XFL. League owners approved the new measures Tuesday.

2 days ago

Arizona Cardinals coach nearly cut player on field, in front of entire team