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Yes, the start of training camps is two months away, but it’s never too early to consider the coming season. A look at the best-case and worst-case scenarios for the Cardinals in 2012:

Dream scenario (11-5): A full offseason of healing and playbook study lets Kevin Kolb prove the Cardinals knew what they were doing when they acquired him from Philadelphia in the offseason. There's plenty of credit to go around. The team's decision to reassign assistant coach John McNulty from receivers to quarterbacks becomes a popular storyline. There's no doubt Kolb's mechanics have improved, but talent and good health are what win football games.

Michael Floyd's addition through the draft makes the Cardinals' passing game nearly impossible to defend, particularly with second-year back Ryan Williams emerging as the game-breaking runner Arizona was convinced it had drafted. Adding young linemen for Russ Grimm to develop also pays off, particularly as the season progresses. Bobby Massie looks like a keeper at right tackle. On the other side, Levi Brown picks up where he left off last season, proving Arizona was right in re-signing him to a five-year contract.

The transformation on defense surprises even the Cardinals. Yes, Arizona made strides on that side of the ball while winning seven of its final nine games in 2011. But there was no way anyone could have expected Sam Acho to challenge Simeon Rice's season franchise record for sacks since 1982 (Rice had 16.5 in 1999). With a healthy Dan Williams at nose tackle and Acho pumping up an already-underrated pass rush, cornerback Patrick Peterson takes the next logical step in his development: picking off passes and returning them for touchdowns.

Winning at San Francisco in Week 17 delivers an 11-5 record and the NFC West title to Arizona, the team's third division crown in five years.

Nightmare scenario (5-11): No one can blame Gregg Williams or Jonathan Vilma for the concussion Kolb suffers in the Hall of Fame game against New Orleans to open the exhibition season. Some in the Cardinals' organization welcome the switch to John Skelton, but with Ryan Williams and Beanie Wells predictably battling knee problems, the offense becomes one-dimensional. That's tough for a team with Brown and a rookie starting at tackle. Kolb's return after a few weeks means as much as it did last season -- nothing.

By October, it's clear the Cardinals didn't do enough at tackle or outside linebacker to take the next step. Those offseason stories about a full offseason helping Kolb seemed justified at the time, but we should have known better. McNulty's coaching helps, but players revert to form under pressure, and Kolb is no exception. He wasn't going to develop instincts all of a sudden, was he? Aldon Smith's three-sack game against Arizona on Monday night in Week 8 doesn't seem so bad when Clay Matthews collects four of them the following week.

For the second time in three seasons, the Cards finish 5-11 after getting blown out at San Francisco in Week 17. The quarterback questions persisting upon Kurt Warner's retirement continue to linger. Watching Peyton Manning in the playoffs doesn't help.

The word "concussion" came up zero times during the most recent NFC West chat. There was one "bounty" question, but I didn't get around to answering it during the chat.

"Do you think Kurt Warner would have come back for another year if he wouldn't have been smashed by the Saints after his interception in Bounty Gate?" Tony from Richmond, Calif., wanted to know.

Warner was headed toward retirement regardless, in my view. The Cardinals might have gotten him to reconsider had they offered a dramatic in crease in pay, but that is purely speculative. Warner was ready for retirement.

Full chat transcript here. Highlights below:

SeniorSwick from Montclair, N.J. asks whether any NFL teams take as many chances as the Seahawks when it comes to creativity, scheme and personnel. He points to the team's decision to convert new draft choice J.R. Sweezy from defense to offense.

Mike Sando: The 49ers converted Bruce Miller from college defensive end to fullback and got good play from him last season. Miller had not played offense since high school. Sweezy, like Miller, was a later-round pick. Teams have greater freedom to experiment with later-round choices. The key is to be creative without over-thinking things. More broadly, the concern in building around specialized or somewhat unique players -- think Red Bryant for Seattle -- is that specialized players can be tough to replace if injured. However, that is where staff flexibility can make up the difference. The Seahawks seem to have a good defensive staff and approach. Another potential concern relative to Sweezy is what the move represents: a clear push by an assistant coach to get a player he liked. Tom Cable also drove the selection of James Carpenter a year ago. Drafting players to fit the staff is important, but we should also watch to see if assistants have too much sway.

Ken from Anaheim, Calif., seeks a heads up on any Rams rookies who might become starters. All the early draft choices should be considered. I focused on undrafted players when putting together an answer.

Mike Sando: Watch the linebackers in general, Ken. That was a position of great need that the Rams didn't address sufficiently in the draft. As a result, the better free-agent linebackers were eager to consider the Rams; those players knew their chances would be better in St. Louis than elsewhere. Derrick Choice from Stephen F. Austin, Alex Hoffman-Ellis from Washington State and Noah Keller from Ohio State were the undrafted free-agent linebackers St. Louis signed recently. Seventh-round pick Aaron Brown is also new to the team.

Brandon Cards Fan from Arizona asks whether the offensive linemen the Cardinals drafted from the fourth through seventh rounds might see the starting rotation or play extensively as rookies.

Mike Sando: Yes, I think fourth-round choice Bobby Massie figures to get some starts at right tackle this season -- either out of necessity or because he wins the job. Jeremy Bridges would be the veteran fallback at right tackle. Moving right guard Adam Snyder into that spot would be another option, but that could weaken two positions. I could see Bridges opening the season as the starter at right tackle, with Massie taking over during the season.

The fun continues. I'm tentatively scheduled to join NFL Live some time after 3:30 p.m. ET for additional thoughts on Ben Roethlisberger's comments regarding the 49ers.

Under criticism from ESPN's Merril Hoge and others, Kurt Warner has clarified his stance on concussions with a reasoned response that advances the conversation with civility.

Should we have expected anything less from the former St. Louis Rams and Arizona Cardinals quarterback?

Warner disagrees with Hoge's contention that treatment for head trauma is the problem, more than the trauma itself. He personalizes the issue by noting that his own child has suffered effects from brain injury. He agrees with Hoge on the need for better treatment. He diffuses Hoge's contention that Warner should "get involved" with his kids' football programs to better ensure safety, pointing out how his 12-year-old son's Pop Warner league conducts baseline neurological testing.

Warner directly counters Hoge's contention that Warner was "uneducated" and "uninformed" on the subject matter. Drawing from his own experience as a player, Warner describes the pressure players feel to get back on the field. He points to the situation in Cleveland with Colt McCoy last season as evidence the NFL is still finding its way on the concussion issue.

Warner also differentiated between his approach as a player and his feelings as a parent.

"As a football player and a fan of the game, I want my kids to play the game that I am so passionate about," he wrote. "They currently play football, and there are few things that bring me more joy than watching them play and getting excited about the game I love. But, at the same time I am constantly concerned about my kids and the violence of the game of football. I worry about them suffering head trauma and developing any long-term issues as a result of that injury."

This was a nearly perfect followup to the less measured comments Warner made last week.

The surest way to avoid a football-related concussion is to stop playing football.

It's a path retired quarterback Kurt Warner has considered promoting, and one retired running back Merril Hoge strongly rejected during a provocative Friday. Both suffered multiple concussions as players.

Concussions forced Hoge, now an ESPN analyst, to retire. They severely affected his quality of life. The fear of additional concussions played at least some role in Warner's decision to retire following the 2009 season.

"I understand how great the game of football was for me, and what it did for my family, but when I'm sitting back and watching my kids play, my boys play right now -- they love it, their dream is to play in the NFL -- I worry about it," Warner told Colin Cowherd.

Warner was speaking from the heart only days after Junior Seau's suicide amplified concerns over what role, if any, head trauma might have played in the retired linebacker's demise.

"I worry about the long-term effects for me personally," Warner continued. "I worry about what can happen after football, as we've seen with a number of guys. I worry about what could happen at a younger age. ... With the way things are going right now and the way guys are getting bigger and stronger and faster, I would encourage my kids to probably stay away from it, if I could."

Hoge, meanwhile, has thought through this issue to a degree most others have not. He used the words "uneducated" and "uninformed" to describe Warner's take on the situation.

"When you think about what the problem is, it is not head trauma," Hoge said. "It is how head trauma is cared for. That is the issue. You are going to have concussions in every sport known to man. You're going to have them riding a bike. My son is 16, played football for eight years. He has had one concussion and that came from falling off a bike, hitting his head on a curb, splitting his helmet open. That doesn't mean I don't let him ride the bike."

Warner's response was understandable. In listening to his conversation with Cowherd, it was clear to me that Warner was still formulating his thinking on the matter. Hoge has a much stronger opinion.

"In Kurt Warner's situation, there was a chance to inform and educate those that are uninformed and uneducated," Hoge said. "Instead of scaring them away from the game, make them embrace the game by doing this: get involved, Kurt Warner. Get involved with your kids and their programs, make sure they are following the right guidelines. If your son is concussed, if your daughter is concussed in soccer or whatever, what are you doing for that player? Are you removing him from the game? Do you have the proper procedures in place? That is what is critical."

Warner could already be doing the things Hoge encouraged him to do, for all we know. The bottom line, in my view, is that the discussion is moving forward.

The gap between the New Orleans Saints' savagely stated intentions and their on-field actions provides an opening to question the punishment handed down by commissioner Roger Goodell.

Jonathan Vilma's season-long suspension for helping to establish and fund the program carries particular interest in the NFC West.

"Multiple independent sources also confirmed that Vilma offered a specific bounty -- $10,000 in cash -- to any player who knocked Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner out of the 2009 divisional playoff game and later pledged the same amount to anyone who knocked Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre out of the 2009 NFC Championship Game the following week," the NFL announced in meting out the punishment.

Saints defensive end Bobby McCray did knock Warner from the game for a time with a crushing hit following an interception, but Warner himself feels as though the Saints did not cross a line with their actions that day.

Warner's comments to Burns & Gambo on Arizona Sports 620 made clear his feelings:

"I could have been seriously hurt every time I stepped on that football field. There is no question that players went out to hurt me and knock me out of games many times throughout my career, whether or not there was a $10,000 bounty on me. Again, I look at it and say, 'Did somebody hit me harder in that situation because the bounty was there?' I don't know. I don't believe so. I believe that was a situation [on the McCray hit] that was set up perfectly for any defensive player, and any defensive player would have taken it. And it was a clean hit and it was a bigger man hitting a smaller man who wasn't prepared for it. And i got crushed.

"I would be mad if someone took a shot at me that was outside the rules of engagement to try to hurt me. If i got hurt because of that, then I would be extremely angry and to me that would cross way over that line.

"I believe that there have been defensive linemen in the locker room many a times say, 'Hey, the first one to knock Kurt out of the game, I'm buying dinner or I'm doing this after the game or whatever. I believe that stuff has gone on for years and years and years. And it wasn't the intention of taking a cheap shot. It was the intention of giving their team a benefit from knocking out a good player on the other team. No doubt in my mind, that that has gone on for years.

"There have been games where I felt like, 'They're really just trying to take me out of this game. They're going a little above and beyond.' I didn't feel that in that playoff game against the Saints. I felt it was a good, hard, competitive football game where the hits on me were clean."

While Goodell is punishing the Saints specifically, he's attacking the bounty mind-set in general. Punishing Vilma and the Saints so harshly may or may not be fair to them. The NFL culture is the broader target.

Vilma and the Saints aren't being punished this week for the hits they put on Warner. League officials already reviewed those hits after the game as a matter of course. The punishment attacks the intentions and makes it easier for the NFL to counter in court allegations it hasn't taken player safety seriously enough.

Note: The video above features discussion on the punishment for Vilma and other players. Warner did not participate in that discussion.

Passing along : Arizona Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt with comments to ESPN's Colin Cowherd regarding the team's draft strategy and quarterback John Skelton.

Whisenhunt, himself at Eagle Scout, said he's a big believer in drafting for character.

On Skelton: "Winning seven out of the last nine, that is something that is very hard to do, and a lot of that was because we had a young quarterback who made some plays for us."

Yes, the Cardinals paid a $7 million bonus to Kevin Kolb recently, but Skelton will get a fair shot at the job because Whisenhunt will insist upon it. That has been the coach's style, no matter the quarterback. He even made Kurt Warner sweat out a competition with Matt Leinart before ultimately going with Warner.

Alex Smith and the San Francisco 49ers face no looming deadline for a contract agreement.

That could help explain why negotiations seem to lack urgency.

The NFL's labor agreement prevents players from entering into football preparations with coaches until April 16. The quarterback market has shaken out elsewhere around the league. Neither side has better alternatives at present.

News that free-agent quarterback Josh Johnson might pay a free-agent visit to the 49ers looks like an attempt by the team to pressure Smith (separately, team CEO Jed York told reporters Tim Tebow was not an option).

Teams routinely show interest in one player to pressure another. Players routinely show interest in one team to pressure another.

Earlier Tuesday, the Detroit Lions put Seattle Seahawks linebacker David Hawthorne on a plane to visit their headquarters. Hawthorne was reportedly still in the air when linebacker Stephen Tulloch, perhaps sensing additional urgency with a free-agent prospect on the way, re-signed with Detroit.

Kurt Warner's experience with the Arizona Cardinals following the 2008 season resembles what is happening to Smith this offseason. Warner had led the Cardinals to a Super Bowl appearance. He had earned a new contract, but the Cardinals realized Warner had more value to them than he had to other teams. Warner was about to turn 38, was known to prefer staying in Arizona and appeared unlikely to start fresh elsewhere.

Smith is younger than Warner, but also less accomplished and less critical to his team's overall success. The 49ers know his value to them is greater than it would be to other teams. They could probably afford to reduce their offer without worrying about another team exceeding it. That wouldn't necessarily be the best tactic, of course, but neither is there any reason for San Francisco to bid against itself.

Would the 49ers sign Johnson to replace Smith on the roster?

Johnson, 25, has five touchdowns, 10 interceptions and a 57.7 NFL passer rating in 26 appearances (five starts) over four NFL seasons. He played for 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh at the University of San Diego. There would be no assurances Johnson would fit well with the 49ers or even beat out 2011 second-round draft choice Colin Kaepernick for the starting job.

The biggest danger for Smith is waiting around long enough for the 49ers to shift their thinking toward the longer-term future. That happened to Matt Hasselbeck in Seattle last offseason. Coach Pete Carroll wanted to bring back Hasselbeck after the quarterback led a surprise playoff run, but Hasselbeck asked for more money than the Seahawks were comfortable offering. As the lockout dragged on, the organization decided to make a clean break.

The Seahawks were in rebuilding mode at the time. The situation in San Francisco is different. The 49ers have a stronger foundation to contend this season with Smith returning. Both sides have to realize a Smith re-signing stands as the best scenario.

Update: Looks like all this Smith talk could be irrelevant quickly.

Ken Whisenhunt's willingness to adapt his offense often comes up as a potential Arizona Cardinals selling point for free-agent quarterback Peyton Manning.

There is truth to the reasoning. Whisenhunt and his offensive staff did make changes to maximize what Kurt Warner could offer the Cardinals. But the increasingly forgotten reality, in my view, is that Warner had to change his approach before Whisenhunt would even name him the starter.

Warner still had the aggressive Mike Martz mindset that worked so well during his Greatest Show on Turf days with the St. Louis Rams. The Cardinals had a different type of team. They wanted Warner to reduce turnovers and play within the framework of their offense. They held firm on the subject and made Warner compete with Matt Leinart.

"Kurt, to his credit, worked very hard on some of the things that we asked him to do: ball security, moving in the pocket, decisions on his reads," Whisenhunt said during the days before Arizona's Super Bowl appearance against Pittsburgh following the 2008 season.

The Cardinals would presumably tailor their offense for Manning, probably to a larger degree than they did for Warner. The career detour Warner took after leaving the Rams created a different set of circumstances for him when the Cardinals signed Warner in 2005, two years before Whisenhunt's arrival.

Warner, upon his retirement following the 2009 season, reflected upon the give and take than went on between him and the coaching staff. Theirs was not a one-way relationship.

First, Warner singled out Whisenhunt for giving him an opportunity perhaps no other coach would have extended. He also pointed to a "meshing" of skills.

"That's a huge part of the reward, that you just didn’t step into this place and everything was set up, and you just rode it to the Super Bowl," Warner said during his retirement news conference. "There was a lot of work. There was a lot of effort. There was a lot of give and take. Sometimes it was screaming matches. Sometimes it was each of us trying to beat into the other one what we believed in and what we wanted to do. But to me, that was fun. That was an awesome part of the process."

The Seattle Seahawks owned the NFC West for years because their owner, Paul Allen, was so clearly superior to his peers in the division.

It was Allen who pushed through a stadium referendum precipitating his purchase of the team in the late 1990s. It was Allen's ownership that enabled the team to hire Mike Holmgren in 1999, another watershed moment for the franchise.

Those two owner-driven events set up the team for seven division titles during a 12-year period, including five in a row beginning in 2003.

Visions of Allen's Seahawks squirming while Peyton Manning visited the Arizona Cardinals over the weekend might not mean much if Manning signs outside the NFC West or agrees to visit Seattle after all. But with Arizona holding a clear edge over the Seahawks at this point in the process, the shrinking ownership gap in the division is worth our attention.

Allen hasn't necessarily slipped even though his fortune, once estimated to exceed $30 billion, has reportedly shrunk to less than half that amount. He remains the wealthiest NFL owner by a wide margin. He helped finance a state-of-the-art waterfront facility that opened in 2008. He gives football decision makers wide latitude and ample resources.

But with the Cardinals' Michael Bidwill and the San Francisco 49ers' Jed York securing new stadiums and winning division titles recently, the Seahawks' competitors have gained ground. Stan Kroenke's ascent in St. Louis has brightened the Rams' outlook as well.

For Arizona, getting Manning to visit was nice. Getting him to sign with the team would more emphatically validate the the Cardinals' progress as an organization.

Bidwill, like York, has a familial reputation to live down.

"(Bidwill) is hugely aware of our fan base and how his dad is viewed," a team source told ESPN's Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter over the weekend. "He came to work with this team to get the stadium built. It took him a long time to get that done, but he did. He is a driven young owner that wants to totally change this franchise's image."

Winning back-to-back division titles while making a Super Bowl appearance affirmed Bidwill's long-held stance that stadium revenue would change how the team could operate. But the Cardinals' 13-19 record over the past two seasons has lent credence to the idea that the team basically lucked into Kurt Warner's career revival.

Beating out John Elway and others for Manning would be another game-changer, comparable to the day Seattle landed Holmgren and, to an extent, when the 49ers secured Jim Harbaugh. Holmgren and Harbaugh were the hottest coaching candidates at the time. Manning, though coming off neck surgeries that might still threaten his career, outranks both in NFL history.

The Cardinals need him. They bet big on Kevin Kolb last offseason, and are running a fat deficit on the investment, with few promising signs. John Clayton's recent report about the team losing confidence in Kolb sounded ominous. Coach Ken Whisenhunt might still need to win the bet on Kolb, but the cost of losing it would disappear if Manning signed with the team.

Finding a quarterback requires taking chances. Manning would be the safest bet in NFL history without the neck surgeries. He still appears to be a safer gamble than putting down another $7 million to continue the relationship with Kolb, a payment that comes due at week's end. Paying Kolb in the absence of Manning would not necessarily prevent John Skelton from winning the starting job.

A year ago, the Kolb experiment gave the Cardinals an opportunity to find out whether Whisenhunt could identify and develop quarterbacks. To what degree had he shaped Ben Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh and, later, Warner in Arizona? That question becomes far less relevant if the Cardinals can close a deal with Manning.

Bidwill's father made a run at Joe Montana in 1993. This time, the Cardinals appear to have a legitimate chance. Times have changed, but by how much? Manning's decision will provide one measure.

Thanks to ESPN New York for passing along audio to my recent conversation with Robin Lundberg and Larry Hardesty regarding Peyton Manning and the NFC West.

Both Arizona and Seattle are in position to tailor their offenses accordingly.

Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt made allowances for Kurt Warner, who also altered his mindset regarding ball security. Seahawks coach Pete Carroll has sought a run-based offense, but he's a defensive-minded head coach, so his involvement on that side of the ball would be more philosophical.

The Seahawks' offensive coordinator, Darrell Bevell, has worked extensively with Brett Favre in Green Bay and Minnesota, so he has experience with high-profile passers. Bevell is not the headstrong type.

Both the Cardinals and Seahawks have high-profile offensive line coaches who coordinate the running game, same as Manning had with Howard Mudd in Indianapolis.

As for the San Francisco 49ers, they're not interested. Ray Ratto outlined some of the reasons why.

Seattle has the least to lose among NFC West teams from going after Manning. Arizona would likely have to part with Kevin Kolb after investing heavily in him last year. San Francisco would have to risk the equity coach Jim Harbaugh has built with Alex Smith, all for a player whose health remains in question.

Kurt Warner, speaking Friday on Sports 620 KTAR, used the word "disappointing" to describe allegations that the New Orleans Saints organized bounties for knockout hits on opposing players.

But the former Arizona Cardinals quarterback said he wasn't surprised. He also said the hit Saints defensive end Bobby McCray delivered to knock Warner out of a playoff game at New Orleans two years ago was legal, and had nothing to do with Warner's decision to retire.

"To think that guys didn't think, 'Hey, we'd love to knock Kurt out or we'd love to knock Brett Favre out, or Drew Brees -- or whoever it might be -- I think that's part of the game and I think that's part of the mindset," Warner said.

Warner described McCray's blindside block during an interception return as a "nice exclamation point" on Warner's career, and one that left him sore for a couple of weeks. But Warner also said his decision to retire had been in the works for some time.

Update: Warner also spoke with XTRA Sports 910 AM. That audio is here.

The Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers have some experience with highly successful older quarterbacks.

Peyton Manning will be 36 if and when he resumes his career with a still-unknown team.

With Mike Greenberg steering the Manning conversation this way, I visited Pro Football Reference for precedent. A search for the most productive seasons from quarterbacks at least 36 years old turned up memorable ones from NFC West alums Steve Young, Kurt Warner and Warren Moon.

The chart shows quarterbacks meeting that age criteria. Each passed for at least 25 touchdowns in a season. I've sorted them by NFL passer rating.

Manning is in another category while recovering from neck problems that sidelined him for the 2011 season. He also would be switching teams for the purposes of this discussion. Brett Favre (2009) and Warren Moon (1997) appear in the chart for their work in debut seasons with new franchises.

None of the players listed was coming off a career-threatening neck injury, however. Rich Gannon's career ended following one.
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The San Francisco 49ers embraced Alex Smith as their starting quarterback one year ago, when most viewed Smith as a first-round draft bust.

Embracing him has only become easier after the team went 13-3 and reached the NFC Championship Game with Smith taking all the important snaps from center.

"We're all in lockstep as an organization that Alex Smith is our guy," coach Jim Harbaugh said. "It's well-documented. You saw the way he played this year. [He is a] tremendous leader on our football team.

Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com says the next step for Smith includes reducing the number of sacks he takes. Maiocco: "On Tuesday, Smith said on 'Chronicle Live' that in the coming weeks he will analyze where he needs to get better and be honest with himself. That's where I see Smith can get better -- a lot better. Perhaps with a full offseason to fully comprehend the offense, Smith will have a greater understanding of the angles he can exploit against certain defenses to get rid of the ball quicker and allow his receivers to make more plays."

Kevin Lynch of the San Francisco Chronicle offers thoughts on various 49ers other than Harbaugh coming up short for awards recently.

Eric D. Williams of the Tacoma News Tribune says it's way too early for anyone in Seattle to get excited about a Super Bowl coming to the Northwest. Williams: "The Seahawks aren’t the only northern city to show interest, as Washington, Denver, New England, Philadelphia, Chicago and Detroit are other northern markets that would likely want to be in the conversation for hosting a Super Bowl. Add to that group the fact San Francisco, San Diego and Minnesota are working on securing funding to build new or remodeled stadiums -- along with the NFL's recent tradition of offering Super Bowls to cities that build new stadiums -- and Seattle likely has an uphill climb of hosting a Super Bowl in the foreseeable future." Noted: The Seahawks have not submitted a formal bid for a Super Bowl. Seattle probably could have secured one years ago had the team's stadium, which opened in 2002, included a roof.

Dave Boling of the Tacoma News Tribune says the Seahawks would be wise to pursue Peyton Manning this offseason. Boling: "Risks? Sure, they’re numerous and obvious. But if there weren’t risks, he would never hit the market. And if he turns out to be even close to the Peyton Manning who was an 11-time Pro Bowl selection, it’s likely that no other single move could put the Seahawks in contention quicker than landing him."

Clare Farnsworth of seahawks.com checks in with new Hall of Famer Cortez Kennedy, who visited Seahawks headquarters Wednesday and went to lunch with several reporters who covered him during his playing days. Kennedy: "It hit me that I’m a Hall of Famer, but you still can't believe it because of the magnitude of the situation being in the Hall of Fame. When you get a call from Steve Largent congratulating you; you get a call from John Randle saying congratulations; Michael Irvin; Marshall Faulk; guys that I played with. That was very special."

Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic checks in with the Cardinals' new quarterbacks coach, John McNulty. McNulty: "I don't think the job is to replace Kurt Warner any more. It's not to go win the game every week, but I think it's to be more productive, to certainly not lose the game, and to make sure every time they're on the field we're in tune with exactly what needs to be done, from play to play. We have to know what these QBs are in tune with and what they'll be able to handle, mentally and physically, and gear it toward them. In the end, they need to perform better, so that will fall on me, that will really fall on all of us. But it ultimately falls on them."

Also from Somers: Hiring former Indianapolis assistant Frank Reich as receivers coach reinforces the idea Arizona could pursue Manning this offseason. Coach Ken Whisenhunt: "I hired Frank because he's a good coach."

Darren Urban of azcardinals.com says the team was close to hiring Todd Haley, but the lack of an opening for an offensive coordinator was a complicating factor.

Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says Dave McGinnis' hiring in St. Louis was inevitable once Jeff Fisher became head coach. McGinnis: "Coaches in this league want to work for Jeff Fisher. The environment that you work in is very, very conducive to doing good things. He's very professional, but you have fun doing it."

Jeff Gordon of stltoday.com says Fisher must build a program, not just a team. Gordon: "The task will be daunting, but Fisher inspires confidence within the football industry. This is why top assistant coaches are lining up to join this project."

Todd Haley's hiring as the Pittsburgh Steelers' offensive coordinator comes after the Arizona Cardinals decided against offering an equivalent role to him.

My initial thought: Haley's pull-no-punches approach to motivation worked well when he was with the Cardinals previously, but how might Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger respond? After all, Roethlisberger was reportedly upset when management forced out previous coordinator Bruce Arians.

The dynamics could be complicated going into this relationship.

We should remember, however, that Haley and former Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner became very close during their years together in Arizona. Also, the well-publicized blowups between Haley and former Cardinals receiver Anquan Boldin did not necessarily reflect an unhealthy relationship. They were overblown in some cases.

Haley showed no fear in confronting players when he thought it would get the most from him. Will he take that approach with Roethlisberger? The quarterback position is different from others. Back in early 2009, when the Cardinals were playing Pittsburgh in the Super Bowl, Haley had this to say about what he liked about Warner:

I think that No. 1, his preparation is second to none. I don't know who could prepare more than him. He's into it. He obviously has great ability to throw the football. I think if you had to say one thing that separates him, he’s got unbelievable vision and anticipation and he’s probably one of the better progression passers as far as getting through his complete read. That’s why a guy like Steve Breaston gets 1,000-yards out of nowhere, because of Kurt’s ability to find the open guy. He’s got a lot of great skills as a quarterback and he knows how to use them.

How Haley and Roethlisberger get along isn't a huge concern in the NFC West, obviously. The Cardinals' decision to move forward with Mike Miller as coordinator and receivers coach John McNulty as the likely quarterbacks coach carries more importance. And if that arrangement does not work out, Cardinals fans will wonder what might have been had Arizona made room for Haley in the role of coordinator.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Thirteen modern-era NFL players were finalists for enshrinement Saturday in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Only one was named offensive or defensive player of the year during his career.

That was the Seattle Seahawks' Cortez Kennedy. His eight Pro Bowls, all-1990s selection and overall dominance made my job as his presenter quite simple. State the facts and let Kennedy's career do the talking. Picking the final five out of 15 modern-era finalists is always tough, however, because it usually requires leaving off worthy candidates.

The 43 other selectors and I met for more than seven hours before identifying Kennedy, Chris Doleman, Dermontti Dawson, Curtis Martin and Willie Roaf as the class of 2012. Jack Butler made it as a seniors candidate.

A few thoughts on the process and the results:

• This class made it through at a good time. Larry Allen, Michael Strahan, Jonathan Ogden, Warren Sapp, Bryant Young, John Lynch and Steve McNair become eligible for the first time in 2013. Shaun Alexander, Derrick Brooks, Marvin Harrison, Rodney Harrison, Tony Dungy and Mike Holmgren join the list in 2014. Isaac Bruce, Edgerrin James, Walter Jones, Junior Seau, Chris Samuels, Kurt Warner, Ty Law and Orlando Pace are among those eligible beginning in 2015.
• Former St. Louis Rams
  and Arizona Cardinals
  cornerback Aeneas Williams should feel great about cracking the final 10 in his first year as a finalist. Williams had 55 career interceptions and scored nine touchdowns. He was a big-time playmaker for bad and good teams alike.
• The situation at receiver remains a mess and it's not going to get easier with Harrison becoming eligible in a couple years. Voters are having a tough time deciding between Cris Carter and Andre Reed. Both made the final 10 this year. Reed made the final 10 last year as well. Having both crack the final 10 this year made it harder for one of them to break through. Voters were more likely to choose one wideout when forced to pick only five players.
• Former San Francisco 49ers owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr. did not make the reduction from 15 to 10. I think it's tougher for voters to quantify how owners and even coaches -- think Bill Parcells, who missed the cut from 10 to five -- contributed to their teams' success. The discussions for Parcells (55-plus minutes) and DeBartolo (42-plus minutes) were more than twice as long as the discussions for other candidates. Hall bylaws prevented voters from considering the legal troubles and suspension that preceded DeBartolo's exit from the game.
• DeBartolo was a finalist in part because he hired Bill Walsh, promoted a winning culture, cared tremendously for his players and helped win five Super Bowls. He spent this weekend with former 49ers player Freddie Solomon, who is in the final days of a battle with cancer. The 49ers' renewed success this past season also reflected well on DeBartolo, who has become a tremendous resource for current team president Jed York, his nephew.
• Electing one pass-rusher (Doleman, who spent part of his career with the 49ers) to the Hall could give former 49ers and Dallas Cowboys pass-rusher Charles Haley an easier time in the future. But with Strahan joining the conversation in 2013, Haley faces stiff competition again. Former Rams pass-rusher Kevin Greene did not make the final 10 despite 160 career sacks.

It's been a whirlwind day. Hall bylaws prevent me from sharing specifics about what was said in the room during the proceedings. The Hall also asked voters not to reveal their votes outright. I voted for five of the six players enshrined on the final cut and supported others. As always, however, reducing to only five in the end required leaving off candidates I hope will make it in the future.