text: McGinnis living happily--for now - tribunedigital-chicagotribune
  PRO FOOTBALL. CARDINALS Q&A.
  McGinnis living happily--for now
  Raising Arizona after fairy tale with Bears ends
  October 14, 2001|BY DON PIERSON.
  Last time Dave McGinnis was here on official business, he didn't stay long. Now the coach of the Arizona Cardinals, he was named coach of the Bears on a January day in 1999. When he found out about it, he had second thoughts.
  As he has said, he was coach of the Bears for five hours but knew about it for only two.
  Question: Was he hypnotized or what?
  Answer: Somebody certainly seemed to be in a trance that day. McGinnis couldn't figure out exactly what was going on, so he went.
  Q: Has he lived happily ever after?
  A: He won last week, which is all that matters in the NFL. He arrives in Chicago as happy as a coach can ever be.
  Q: But aren't the Cardinals worse than the Bears?
  A: They are 1-2 and the Bears are 2-1, which doesn't necessarily mean the Bears are twice as good or the Cardinals twice as bad. The Bears are favored, however, which is a rare occasion.
  Q: How did the Cardinals beat the Eagles?
  A: They were sneaky. The Eagles have been busy this season thinking about how good everybody thinks they are. That is not yet a problem with the Bears, although two wins in a row generate dangerous levels of confidence. For example the Bears are likely to believe they are supposed to beat the Cardinals just because they are favored.
  Q: Aren't the Cardinals liable to have the same attitude?
  A: Actually, yes. In Cardinal land, one win constitutes a streak. They haven't won two in a row since mid-1999. So after beating the Eagles in Philly, they no doubt are offended to come to Chicago as underdogs.
  Q: How could they possibly beat the Bears?
  A: The first clue will be if Jake Plummer throws more touchdown passes than interceptions. McGinnis, temporarily forgetting he is a defensive coach, shored up his offense this year in hopes that he could outscore teams. It worked for his buddy Mike Martz in St. Louis, so he thought he would try it.
  Q: What are the chances of Plummer throwing more touchdown passes than interceptions?
  A: Not good, based on a record of 26 touchdown passes and 50 interceptions in his last 28 starts. In his desire to make things happen, Plummer often makes them happen for the other team.
  Q: Isn't it true the Cardinals could have drafted Brian Urlacher?
  A: And certainly might have if McGinnis had been doing the picking. The Cardinals needed a running back and selected Thomas Jones, who so far appears to be following the career path of Curtis Enis.
  Q: So the Bears aren't the only team that makes drafting mistakes?
  A: To their great delight and small consolation, true.
  Q: Why did the Cardinals ever move out of Chicago?
  A: George Halas ran them out in 1960 so the Bears could televise their road games back to Chicago. The NFL (with aid and encouragement from CBS) paid the Cardinals $500,000 to take a hike to St. Louis.