ARIZONA — Former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury is seeing his name heat up in NFL coaching searches after spending a year at the college ranks.

After being fired by the organization following the 2022 season, Kingsbury eventually took a job at USC under head coach Lincoln Riley to be an offensive analyst and quarterbacks coach.

This offseason, he’s expected to interview for a handful of NFL offensive coordinator jobs, one of which has already happened with the Chicago Bears.

Now, another opportunity could come in the Steel City.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are in search of a permanent offensive coordinator moving forward following the dismissal of Matt Canada earlier in the season, and The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo listed a slew of potential candidates – Kingsbury included.

“Kingsbury is considered something of a quarterback whisperer. During his four-year stint as the Arizona Cardinals head coach, he helped Kyler Murray win Offensive Rookie of the Year and make it to two Pro Bowls,” wrote DeFabo.

“Before that, he worked with Patrick Mahomes at Texas Tech and helped Johnny Manziel win the Heisman Trophy in 2012 as Texas A&M’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. He’s going to be a hot name this cycle and is scheduled to meet with the Chicago Bears, who could be targeting the USC quarterback he helped develop, Caleb Williams.”

Former Cardinal Byron Leftwich also made the cut:

“Leftwich is one person with ties to Pittsburgh worth monitoring. The former Steelers backup QB enjoyed success at Tampa Bay. However, how much was that because of his ability as a coordinator, and how much was it Tom Brady behind center and then-head coach Bruce Arians designing the offense?” wrote DeFabo.

Kingsbury went 28-37-1 during his four-year tenure in Arizona.

Donnie Druin
BY DONNIE DRUIN
Donnie Druin is the Publisher for All Cardinals and Inside The Suns. Donnie moved to Arizona in 2012 and has been with Fan Nation since 2018. In college he won “Best Sports Column” in the state of Arizona for his section and has previously provided coverage for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona State Sun Devils. Follow Donnie on Twitter @DonnieDruin for more news, updates, analysis and more!

Follow DonnieDruin
START CON