Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson has been demoted.
Wilson, who was chosen to the Pro Bowl at the end of five of the last six seasons, was not in the starting lineup on Sunday against the Falcons, and his playing time was cut sharply -- he played only 41 of 73 defensive snaps this week, after playing every defensive snap in the Cardinals’ last game.
So what happened? Don’t ask Wilson.
“That’s a head coach question,” Wilson said after the game.
So what does head coach Ken Whisenhunt say? According to Whisenhunt, demoting Wilson was a move designed to improve the defense, especially in pass coverage, and it was successful.
“Looks like it worked pretty well, didn’t it?” Whisenhunt said. “Like I said, it was consistent with our message to the team and I think our team rallied behind that. Our team played hard today.”
Whisenhunt said Wilson accepted the demotion as part of what’s best for the team, as the Cardinals are giving more playing time to younger safeties.
“It’s never easy but Adrian is a real pro and he handled it well. But that’s where we are as a team. James [Sanders] and Rashad [Johnson] deserved a chance. We are trying to get better,” Whisenhunt said.
It says a lot about how far the 33-year-old Wilson has fallen that part of getting better is taking Wilson off the field.