Arians retiring; Fox, Caldwell fired
Say goodbye to “No risk it, no biscuit.”
Bruce Arians, one of the NFL’s biggest personalities, is retiring from coaching after five mostly successful and usually entertaining seasons as head coach of the Arizona Cardinals.
The 65-year-old twotime NFL Coach of the Year, known for his Kangol-style hats, colorful vocabulary and wide-open “no risk it, no biscuit” offense, announced the decision in an emotional session with the media on Monday.
“It’s been an unbelievable journey,” he said. “The tears you see are really tears of joy and peace. I’ll miss the players. I’ll miss coming out of the locker room hearing the national anthem because it still gets to me.”
Arians said he told the players of his decision Sunday after the team’s 26-24 win at Seattle and the players never leaked it to reporters.
“And they lied to you because of that,” he said. “There’s really no greater feeling in the world to know your players have your back.”
Of the reason for the retirement, Arians said, “Family’s a big one.”
Arians, who spent more than four decades in coaching, has had health issues in recent years, including treatment for diverticulitis as well as a successful fight against kidney cancer last offseason.
Arians won a franchiserecord 50 games in his five seasons with Arizona.
Counting his stint as interim coach of the Indianapolis Colts, Arians went 59-35-1 as a head coach, including the playoffs. THREE LOSING SEASONS DOOM FOX >> The Chicago Bears fired John Fox after three losing seasons, ending one of the least successful coaching stints in team history.
The dismissal came one day after the Bears lost at NFC North champion Minnesota to finish 5-11.
“Today is the tough part of our results-oriented business,” Fox said in a statement.
Fox was 14-34 in his three years with Chicago, a .292 winning percentage that ranks as the second lowest for the Bears. Only Abe Gibron was worse 1130-1 (.274) from 1972-74. LIONS FIRE CALDWELL AFTER MISSING PLAYOFFS >> Jim Caldwell may have been the Detroit Lions’ most successful coach in the Super Bowl era.
That was not enough to save his job.
The Lions fired Caldwell after a season in which the team raised hopes before fading and missing the playoffs with a 9-7 record. They also fired offensive line coach Ron Prince, keeping the rest of the assistants under contract in case the next coach wants to retain any of them.
Caldwell was 36-28 in four seasons and went 0-2 in two postseasons with the Lions.
BRONCOS’ JOSEPH KEEPING JOB >> John Elway is giving Vance Joseph another chance.
The Broncos general manager decided to retain his rookie head coach following a 5-11 season that was in many ways the franchise’s worst since Denver’s dismal AFL days in the 1960s.
“Vance and I had a great talk this morning about our plan to attack this offseason and get better as a team,” Elway tweeted.
LEWIS’ FATE STILL UP IN THE AIR >> Coach Marvin Lewis talked to owner Mike Brown about his future with the Bengals, but they reached no conclusions and planned more discussions.
The Bengals failed to make the playoffs for the second straight season, and Lewis’ contract is finished after his 15th year in Cincinnati. He said Monday
that he’s not sure he’ll be back. He and Brown had a general discussion about the team’s future. PATRIOTS ASSISTANTS TO INTERVIEW >> It’s another bye week for the New England Patriots, and that means time for Bill Belichick’s assistants to interview for head coaching jobs.
Both offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and defensive coordinator Matt Patricia are expected to be coveted by the six or more teams looking to fill openings this offseason. With the Patriots off until their divisional playoff game on Jan. 13, McDaniels and Patricia will have a chance to make their case.
BILLS’ MCCOY MAY PLAY AGAINST JAGUARS >> Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott says medical test results on LeSean McCoy’s injured right ankle were negative, giving the running back a chance to play against Jacksonville in the AFC wild-card game on Sunday.
WASHINGTON SIGNS DUNBAR TO DEAL >> Washington has signed cornerback Quinton Dunbar to a multiyear deal. The team announced the contract after finishing its season at 7-9. Dunbar was set to be a restricted free agent.
RAVENS COORDINATOR RETIRES >> Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Dean Pees announced his retirement following a successful NFL career that began with the Patriots. The 68-year-old Pees told players of his decision on New Year’s Day, less than 24 hours after the Ravens were eliminated from playoff contention with a 31-27 loss to Cincinnati.