Report: Ray Horton is out as Arizona Cardinals defensive coordinator

While the Arizona Cardinals defense made great strides in 2012 — ranked in the top 5 this season in pass defense and team takeaways — defensive coordinator Ray Horton won’t live to see another day in the Valley, according to Mike Silver of Yahoo! Sports.

Although Horton previously worked for six seasons (2004-2010) in Pittsburgh with Bruce Arians, the new Cardinals head coach will reportedly not be retaining him on his staff.

I’m told Ray Horton is out as Cardinals defensive coordinator and will be replaced by Todd Bowles. Source who knows. Bad vibes all around.

— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) January 18, 2013

On Wednesday, arizonasports.com had heard that would be the case, but has not yet confirmed Silver’s report.

Bowles, who will reportedly be replacing Horton, played eight seasons (1986-1993) in the NFL as a safety for the Washington Redskins and San Francisco 49ers.

He has served as an NFL assistant with six different franchises since 1995, and most recently was the defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2012.

Bowles worked with Arians when the two were together with the Cleveland Browns from 2001-2003.

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