Report: Cardinals Request to Interview Bears Assistant GM Ian Cunningham

The Arizona Cardinals have moved on from Steve Keim and already have reached out to teams for potential replacements. Chicago Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham was reportedly requested from Arizona.

It's been a rather frantic morning for the Arizona Cardinals. 

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the team has officially moved on from general manager Steve Keim and head coach Kliff Kingsbury after a disaster 4-13 season. 

"The Arizona Cardinals Football Club today announced that head coach Kliff Kingsbury has been relieved of his duties. In addition, General Manager Steve Keim has decided to step away from his position in order to focus on his health. The team wishes them well and thanks both of them for their contributions," said the Cardinals via a release.

The search for a new general manager is now underway, as Arizona has already reached out to potential candidates. 

CBS NFL insider Jonathan Jones reports the Cardinals requested permission to interview Chicago Bears assistant general manager Ian Cunningham:

The Arizona Cardinals are beginning their GM search. They've put in a request to interview Bears AGM Ian Cunningham, per source.

— Jonathan Jones (@jjones9) January 9, 2023

Cunningham was also requested by the Tennessee Titans to interview as well. Still under the age of 40, he projects as one of the top prospects to take over a team and has received praise from well-respected general managers such as Baltimore Ravens GM Eric DeCosta:

“He’s able to look outside as a way of spurring ideas and looking at things from a different lens,” said DeCosta. “That can be very helpful in a sport like ours when so much of what we do has been ingrained in us by the way things have been done for so long.”

Cunningham began as a scout for Baltimore in 2013 before eventually becoming the Philadelphia Eagles' director of college scouting in 2017. He worked his way up to director of player personnel in 2021 prior to take the assistant general manager job in Chicago. 

His climb up the ladder has been fast and furious, but well deserved. The Athletic named him in their 40 rising stars under 40 list and Bears GM Ryan Poles also offered thoughtful words on Cunningham:

"The one thing I've learned just working with past general managers is you get pulled in so many different directions," Poles said to ChicagoBears.com. 

"That's just a part of this league. So, to have a right-hand man that can keep the evaluation process going while you're getting pulled in different directions is critical. And I trust in Ian. We have a great relationship. We have a very similar philosophy. And he's a good person overall, so he's going to be able to help bring the group together."

Keim stepped away with a few weeks left in the season for what was described as health-related reasons, leaving Arian Wilson and Quentin Harris in the interim role as a duo. 

Arizona has also reportedly reached out to the San Francisco 49ers to interview director of pro personnel Ran Carthon and assistant GM Adam Peters, according to Adam Schefter. 

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