Ex-Cardinals coach communicated with suspended GM via burner phone
The Arizona Cardinals just can’t seem to stop breaking the rules.
According to a deposition transcript obtained by ESPN, former Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks admitted that he had communication with ex-general manager Steve Keim through a burner phone provided to him by the team during Keim’s five-week suspension for drunk driving in 2018.
"As much as we would like to share the truth of what transpired, the confidentiality order in place prohibits us from doing so," the Cardinals said in a statement to ESPN.
Wilks says he was directed by Keim and Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill to use the burner phone to keep Keim in the loop of the team’s day-to-day.
During Keim’s absence, Arizona signed running back David Johnson to a three-year, $39 million contract extension, which was likely approved by the GM while he was supposed to have no contact with anyone in the organization.
Wilks’ testimony was obtained via video conference as part of an ongoing arbitration case by former Cardinals VP Terry McDonough against Bidwill, whom he alleges exhibited discriminatory and racist behavior toward employees, as well as forcing other team executives to use burner phones to communicate with Keim.
Attorneys for the Cardinals filed a complaint with an NFL arbitrator maintaining that Wilks was not cross-examined during the deposition, and until he’s questioned by Cardinals attorneys, his testimony won’t officially be entered into record.
Wilks, now the defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers, says he only used the burner phone once, which was to respond to a message from Keim asking how practice was going.
"With me being a first-year head coach, I felt uncomfortable from the beginning that I worked this hard to get to this plateau and this opportunity, and then I was presented with this situation with being unethical," Wilks testified.
This is the second time this offseason the Cardinals have made headlines for all the wrong reasons. The organization settled a tampering case in April with the Philadelphia Eagles involving the hire of head coach Jonathan Gannon. Arizona swapped its third-round pick (No. 66 overall) with Philly (No. 94 overall) as part of the deal.
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