TEMPE — Arizona Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur never knew defensive coordinator Nick Rallis personally before this offseason.
He did, however, have an idea of what Rallis brought to a coaching staff after a firsthand look of what the defensive coordinator can bring to the table. Their six battles over the past three years, with LaFleur as Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator and Rallis a Cardinals defensive coordinator, were a big reason why Rallis was brought back for another go in Arizona.
“You felt like you knew him well … there were some great battles,” LaFleur said Wednesday. “Being able to get to know him through this process, we had very honest and open dialogue, and I like what I heard. This guy, he’s a stud and his best days are totally in front of him and I know it’s just a great fit for us.”
What drew Cardinals coach Mike LaFleur to retaining Nick Rallis as DC?
To start, he felt like he knew Rallis from coaching against him so often.
“He’s a stud.” pic.twitter.com/fr4tmqkCMA
— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) February 18, 2026
A big talking point for LaFleur has been around Arizona’s defensive flexing against the Rams in Week 2 of the 2024 regular season.
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It was nowhere near a close contest between the two sides, with Rallis’ unit holding the Rams to 10 points while the Arizona offense dropped 41.
And although the Rams took Game 2 of that season, L.A. was held to just 13 points in the penultimate game of the year.
Now, it’s on Rallis and the defense to reach back and rekindle that success, which was few and far between in 2025 behind the sixth-worst defense (357.7 yards allowed per game) and the fourth-most points allowed (28.7). Those numbers undoubtedly played a part in the departures of the previous coaching staff and defensive-minded head coach Jonathan Gannon.
Whether it was giving up leads in the fourth quarter during Arizona’s one-score losing streak that spanned five games in the first half of the year, or the unit getting ripped to shreds in the second half of the season with five games of at least 37 points allowed (three coming against NFC West foes), there’s a lot to fix before the upcoming regular season rolls around.
Rallis understands that context and his opportunity to run it back under a new head coach.
“Means a lot because I love the players,” he said. “I know that we can be better than what we put on tape. I’m fortunate for the opportunity to get another shot at that.”
Given some of the season-ending injuries to key pieces like Walter Nolen III (knee) and Garrett Williams (Achilles) and the unknowns about their return timelines, plus potential departures from Calais Campbell and Jalen Thompson this free agency, the unit could look very different in 2026.
As for where Rallis even begins following “a long process of reflection” this offseason?
“There are a lot of variables to that.”
“There’s a lot of variables to that. The most important ones to me are the controllables. … It’s never one thing.”
Cardinals DC Nick Rallis reflects on the defense’s inefficiencies last year and how he can move the needle forward in 2026. pic.twitter.com/vZ2Hsyo9N1
— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) February 18, 2026
“The most important ones to me are the controllables for us in the building. And it’s layered,” Rallis said. “There are things that we could do better schematically. There are things that we could do better with the technique. There are ways that we could teach it better. There are ways that we could execute it better. There are ways that we could I could call it better.
“It’s never one thing. … It’s a combination of multiple things that when you look back at last season, it’s how do we move the needle on all those little things that we have control over. That’s really the main focus of how we learn from our mistakes and learn from our failures and understand that agitation is growth if you embrace it that way so that when we move forward, we can be our best selves.”
That being said, there are two variables Rallis doesn’t have to fully dive into that most new coaches simply can’t avoid:
– Getting used to his new surroundings
– Connecting with holdover players and coaches
It may seem small given the grand scheme of being an NFL coordinator, but it’s a good foundation to have for both Rallis and his first-year head coach.
“He knows these guys. It’s not only just from a defense perspective. It’s been good to just pick his brain from an offensive perspective, too, about some of these guys and the coaches and the people around the building,” LaFleur said.
“That’s been great and again, this guy loves ball. Loves to work out and he loves ball and he loves his family, too, which is a huge priority for me as well.”
from Arizona Sports https://ift.tt/BvSCUwr
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