More revelations came out on Thursday about the Arizona Cardinals' toxic work environment in a report from The Athletic.
Per Kalyn Kahler,
multiple "current and former Cardinals employees detailed a culture at the organization in which they felt constantly on edge, and described unwritten policies about how women were to dress, interact with male staffers and players, and where they could and couldn't go in the building."
Owner Michael Bidwill's response was much better than when former executive Terry McDonough accused the team of violating the terms of former general manager Steve Keim's 2018 suspension for DUI by implementing a burner phone scheme.
"As I have said personally to every member of the Cardinals organization," Bidwill responded, through a statement, "I certainly have room to grow and with the benefit of hindsight, would have done things differently over the years."
Among the offenses that reportedly drew Bidwill's ire were a squeaky wheel, a woman's laugh and an employee walking too slow.
A wall was constructed to prevent coaches and players from seeing women who worked in an area on the second floor of the team building, and one employee at a golf event was concerned about accepting a ride from a player in a cart, fearing potential retribution for interacting with the player.
Another was reprimanded for conversing with a player on a flight, being told that "it wasn't a good look" for her to do so.
The details of the Cardinals' problematic workplace gel with McDonough's
arbitration claim filed in April. In it, he alleged Bidwill ordered him — and then-head coach Steve Wilks — to use burner phones to communicate with Keim after the team announced he was suspended five weeks for an earlier DUI arrest.
McDonough's claim also noted "Bidwill reduced two pregnant women — one five months pregnant, the other seven months — to tears after screaming at them with 'abusive and bullying mistreatment.'
"Bidwill's widespread workplace misconduct is significantly worse than the misbehavior of former crosstown Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver," alleged McDonough.
Sarver sold the Suns in December 2022 after being suspended and fined by the NBA for $10M.
The Cardinals
attacked McDonough in response to his claim, providing unnecessary personal details that had no bearing on his allegations.
With Dan Snyder out of the league, the throne for most toxic NFL owner is up for the taking. Bidwill has a more credible case for the title than arguably anyone else.
While most complaints alleged in The Athletic article were from non-football personnel, the culture can permeate the organization. Arizona has had one playoff appearance since 2016, posting a 47-70-2 record.
In
the 2023 NFL Players Association team report cards, the Cardinals ranked 31st, with players giving the team a failing grade in categories including "Treatment of Families," "Food Service/Nutrition," "Weight Room," "Training Room" and "Locker Room."
"The floors are uneven" and "the floorboards are peeling up" were two complaints against the weight room.
It's no surprise that the foundation in Arizona is in shambles. The only time the organization makes headlines is for unseemly reasons.
Bidwill said the right things in response to The Athletic report, acknowledging his shortcomings as owner. However, his talk is cheap until there are tangible changes within the organization