Wilks, 48, spent last season as defensive coordinator of the Panthers after five seasons as the team’s secondary coach. He’s been an NFL assistant for 12 years.
Wilks replaces the colorful and outspoken Bruce Arians, who retired after five seasons and compiled a franchise-record 50 victories.
With the hiring of  Wilks, all three major football programs in the state have African-American coaches — Wilks, Herm Edwards at Arizona State and Kevin Sumlin at Arizona. Wilks is the Cardinals’ second African-American coach (Dennis Green was the first) and the only minority candidate to get an NFL head coaching job this hiring cycle.
“This is not really a rebuild, this is a retool,” Wilks told azcardinals.com. “We have the culture of winning here. We just have to be able to sustain it. It’s all about trying to get to the next level and the consistency you need to get to the next level.”
“I’d like to introduce myself to the `Bird Gang,'” he said. “This is your head coach Steve Wilks. I’m so excited about building something great here. It’s all about trying to create a commitment to excellence and I can’t wait to see you guys at the Red Sea.”
Wilks was in Arizona for a second interview last week and was interviewed for the Tennessee job, which went to Mike Vrabel. Wilks also coached for 11 years at the collegiate level, including a one-year stint as head coach at Savannah State in 1999.
The Cardinals planned to introduce Wilks as coach at a news conference Tuesday at team headquarters.
Wilks played defensive back at Appalachian State, attended the Seattle Seahawks training camp and played for the Charlotte Rage of the Arena Football League.
He worked his way up through the college assistant coaching ranks with stops at Johnson C. Smith in Charlotte, Savannah State, Illinois State, Appalachian State, East Tennessee State, Bowling Green, Notre Dame and Washington.
The Carolina Panthers have their tenth practice of training camp at Wofford College.
Wilks’ first NFL job was as defensive backs coach of the Chicago Bears. He held a similar job with the San Diego Chargers for three seasons before joining the Panthers staff.
Under Wilks this season, the Panthers ranked seventh in total defense.
Speaking about Wilks last week, his Charlotte players were supportive.
“I think he gets guys to relate to him, get on the same page, get on the same scheme,” defensive end Charles Johnson said. “He comes to work every day and guys respect that. Just his whole personality. His mentality of getting guys to play how you want to play. He’s a good coach for that.”
In an interview last fall, linebacker Luke Kuechly said, “Steve Wilks and all those guys are doing an excellent job of game-planning and putting us in position to be successful and utilizing what we do well. Those coaches listen (to the players).
“They’re not hard-headed. They do a great job with us. They motivate us. They do a good job of making sideline corrections and in-game adjustments. It’s fun to play for them.”
The Cardinals were the last team to fill a coaching vacancy, just as they were in 2013 when they hired Arians, who won his second NFL coach of the year award in his second season with the team.
Last week, Rivera talked about Wilks’ coaching potential.
“I know that Steve is a hot commodity, deservedly so,” Rivera said. `He has done a tremendous job wherever he’s been, starting in Chicago and San Diego and down here with us. It’s going to be a tough one. Him and Sean (McDermott) are two very good people who are very special to this organization.”
The Cardinals have a head coach with a background in defense for the first time since Dave McGinnis was hired 17 years ago. Wilks’ first task probably is to hire an offensive coordinator, a move that’s particularly important because the retirement of Carson Palmer left Arizona with no quarterback.
And general manager Steve Keim is turning his attention full-time to finding that elusive quarterback, through a trade, free agency, the draft or any combination of the three.
MORE ON STEVE WILKS
Steven Bernard Wilks (born August 8, 1969) is an American football coach who is the current head coach for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL). From 2012 to 2017, Wilks worked as a defensive coach for the Carolina Panthers.
Wilks played defensive back from 1987 to 1991 at Appalachian State.
Wilks played one year of professional football  in the AFL for the Charlotte Rage as a wide receiver, defensive back, and kick returner.
Wilks served as Head Football Coach at Savannah State College for one season (1999) and compiled a record of 5-6.
Wilks was not unemployed for long, however. He was hired as defensive backs coach of the San Diego Chargers in 2009 when former Bears defensive coordinator Ron Rivera moved to the same position in San Diego.
Carolina Panthers
When Rivera became head coach of the Panthers, he hired Wilks as secondary coach on January 15, 2012. He was promoted to assistant head coach in 2015. He was Pro Football Focus‘s second runner up to their Secondary Coach of the Year award.
After Sean McDermott left to become head coach of the Buffalo Bills, Wilks was promoted to defensive coordinator.
After the 2017 season, Wilks was an extremely hot commodity for teams in need of new head coaches. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, teams were impressed by Wilks’ interview with the Los Angeles Rams in the previous offseason before they eventually hired Sean McVay. Wilks interviewed with the New York Giants and his former boss in Carolina, ex-Panthers general manager David Gettleman.
Arizona Cardinals
Head Coaching Record
| Year | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Bowl/playoffs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Savannah State (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) (1999) | |||||||||
| 1999 | Savannah State | 5–6 | 3–4 |  |  | ||||
| Savannah State: | 5–6 | 3–4 |  | ||||||
| Total: | 5–6 |  | |||||||
