Anthony Weaver Continues To Draw Heavy Interest This Coaching Cycle
The NFL coaching carousel is a lot like a high-stakes game of musical chairs, except the chairs are gold-plated, and the music is usually drowned out by the sound of screaming fanbases on Twitter. Right now, the music is playing loud, and Anthony Weaver is the guy everyone is trying to grab before the beat drops.
If you thought the race for the next head coaching gigs was going to be a slow burn, think again. The drama surrounding the former Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator has officially hit a fever pitch this weekend, turning into a three-way tug-of-war that has front offices in Arizona, Pittsburgh, and Buffalo scrambling to book flights and finalize pitches.
Weaver Returns To the Desert
Here is the situation: The Arizona Cardinals are not messing around. After parting ways with Jonathan Gannon following a three-year stint that didn’t exactly set the world on fire, the Cards are looking for a culture shock. They want grit. They want toughness. And apparently, they really want Weaver.
According to NFL insider Tom Pelissero, Arizona is flying Weaver back in for a second interview this Sunday. In the world of NFL hiring, a second date is serious business. It means you passed the initial steps, and now they want to see if you have the actual blueprints to rebuild a franchise.
It makes sense why Arizona is circling back. Weaver isn’t just a clipboard holder; he’s a former player who understands the trenches. He brings an “old school” mentality that resonates with GMs tired of finesse football. He’s on record talking about “sticking a helmet under a guy’s chin” and “violently taking the ball away.” That is the kind of locker room sermon that gets players ready to run through a brick wall.
The Steelers Stare Down
But here is where things get spicy. While Arizona is prepping for Sunday, the Pittsburgh Steelers are trying to close the deal right now.
The Steelers, a franchise that changes head coaches about as often as Halley’s Comet passes Earth, find themselves in a rare transition period after Mike Tomlin stepped down. They brought Weaver in for an in-person interview on Friday. By all accounts, he is a finalist for the job.
This puts Pittsburgh in a precarious spot. They are notoriously patient, thorough, and deliberate. They usually like to let the process breathe. But they don’t have the luxury of time right now. With Arizona putting the full-court press on Weaver, the Steelers’ front office has to decide if they are willing to pull the trigger or risk losing their top defensive target to the desert.
If Pittsburgh waits until next week to interview other candidates, like Rams staffers Chris Shula or Nate Scheelhaase, who can’t interview until after the NFC Championship Game, they might find Weaver has already signed on the dotted line elsewhere.
Buffalo Enters the Chat
Just to add a little more chaos to the mix, the Buffalo Bills are sneaking in the back door. Weaver is scheduled to chat with Buffalo on Saturday, right in between his Pittsburgh and Arizona meetings.
Weaver has history there, having coached the defensive line in Buffalo back in 2013. While the noise around him landing in Buffalo isn’t as loud as the Arizona or Pittsburgh rumors, you can never count out the reunion angle. It turns this weekend into a veritable cross-country tour for Weaver, who is racking up enough frequent flyer miles to buy his own jet.
Why Everyone Wants Weaver
So, why is Weaver the flavor of the month? It comes down to resilience. Look at what he did in Miami. The Dolphins’ defense was absolutely decimated by injuries this past season. They were signing guys off the street and throwing them into coverage. Yet, Weaver managed to keep that unit competitive and ranked in the top five defensively for a chunk of the year.
He has done the rounds, coaching lines for the Texans, Browns, and Ravens. He has learned under John Harbaugh. He has played the game. In a league that is currently obsessed with young, offensive geniuses, Weaver represents a return to hard-nosed, defensive accountability. He is a “leader of men” candidate, and frankly, there is a shortage of those guys right now.
The Verdict
This weekend is make-or-break. The Cardinals clearly see him as a primary target to fix their culture. The Steelers see him as a potential successor to a legacy of defensive greatness. The Bills are lurking.
For Weaver, it’s a good problem to have. For the fans in Arizona and Pittsburgh, it’s going to be a long weekend of refreshing news feeds, hoping their team doesn’t get left standing when the music stops.
