Mike LaFleur stood out early to the Cardinals in their search for a new head coach after firing Jonathan Gannon in January. Gannon finished with a record of 15-36 and had no playoff appearances in three seasons. Lafleur is a young offensive mind from the McVay coaching tree and helped the Rams finish in the top five of total offense in 2025. The LaFleur brothers now join the Harbaughs as head coaches in the NFL.

Taking your first head coaching job in the powerhouse NFC West division against your old team is not for the faint of heart, but LaFleur will have some pieces to work with, including the third overall pick in the NFL draft. The biggest decision for LaFleur and the Cardinals heading into 2026 is what to do with Kyler Murray. Is this going to be a reclamation project from day one for the new head coach to make Murray work? Does the team navigate trade waters, lowering the dead cap hit, or bite the bullet and release Murray? Not playing after suffering a foot injury in Week 5 muddied the waters about his future with the Cardinals, but with a weak quarterback class in 2026, a trade may now be a realistic possibility.

Author: Dane Madoche (@FF_DaMaddog)