Trey McBride: Head coach Mike LaFleur can get Cardinals back on track

SCOTTSDALE — Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride is coming off a season many can only dream of having. His 126 catches for 1,239 yards and 11 touchdowns were no joke.

He now has a third head coach to get acquainted with since arriving in Arizona in 2022. Again, no joke.

McBride’s Arizona tenure started with Kliff Kingsbury, took a three-year detour with Jonathan Gannon and now continues with another offensive-minded head coach in Mike LaFleur.

The tight end hasn’t spent much time with the former Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator. He has, however, gotten a front-row seat the past three seasons on what a LaFleur-led offense could look like.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Arizona Sports (@arizsports)

“They have had a lot of success over there in L.A. They love the tight end. They love to throw the ball. They do a great job of mixing it up and all sorts of things,” McBride told Arizona Sports during the Annexus Pro-Am at the WM Phoenix Open. “Very excited for what he brings to the table and I think we’ll have a lot of fun with him.”

“I got to see him on his interviews and (he had) a lot of energy, a lot of excitement,” the tight end added. “I think he’ll do a great job and get us back on track. I’m really excited just to get to know him more, get his guys in and I think we’ll have a great season.”

He’s not lying about the Rams loving their tight ends.

While most of the attention went toward Puka Nacua’s massive season or Davante Adams’ 14 touchdowns filled with red zone daggers, L.A. still found a way to adapt and keep its tight ends involved. It had to given some of the injuries at wide receiver throughout the year.

Colby Parkinson paced the TEs room with 408 yards on 43 catches. Those numbers might not scream “game changer!” His eight touchdowns do, though.

The trio of Tyler Higbee, Terrance Ferguson and Davis Allen each contributed three touchdowns and a combined 720 yards.

No other team used more 13 personnel looks than the Rams last year after doing so sparingly under LaFleur in the two years prior, according to Sumer Sports.

With McBride, Elijah Higgins and a returning Tip Reiman — plus wide receivers Michael Wilson and Marvin Harrison Jr. — Arizona could have more than enough for LaFleur to work with in replicating some of that success. It’s at least a strong start even if the quarterback situation remains murky.

It’s not going to happen overnight, though.

“We’re going to have foundational aspects that are going to be tried and true,” LaFleur said during Tuesday’s introductory press conference. “We organically built to that 13 personnel.

“It wasn’t like we were sitting here a year ago saying, ‘Hey, we’re probably going to (have) the most 13 personnel uses in football.’ That’s an absolute lie. The best offenses I’ve been a part of, they’ve organically just gotten to that point. Guys like Trey are going to be awesome to work with and we’ll figure out the best ways to utilize him.”

Related

Mike LaFleur excited to call Cardinals offenseCardinals to hire Nathaniel Hackett as offensive coordinatorReport: Cardinals request to interview Rams' Aubrey Pleasant, 2 othersMike LaFleur had an eye for Cardinals well before head-coaching hire: 'Just felt right'Mike LaFleur's introduction was a small win for Cardinals and their fansLarry Fitzgerald going into Ring of Honor, will see his jersey retired at halftime of Cardinals-Broncos