Arizona Cardinals fire head coach Steve Wilks after just one season
Monday 31 December 2018 16:22, UK
Arizona Cardinals have fired head coach Steve Wilks after just one season in charge.
The 49-year-old becomes the first NFL head coach to lose his job after just one season since the San Francisco 49ers fired Chip Kelly in 2016.
Wilks was hired by Arizona to replace the retiring Bruce Arians after serving one season as defensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers.
But he could not turn around the fortunes of the Cardinals, who won just three games all season and ended the season with the No 1 pick in the 2019 draft.
Arizona ranked dead last in the NFL in points scored with 225 (14.1 per game), while they also struggled on defense, conceding 425 points (26th in the NFL).
The Cardinals lost their final game of the season to NFC West rivals Seattle Seahawks, with a late field goal from Sebastian Janikowski condemning them to a 27-24 loss at CenturyLink Field.
