A lot of people were quick to blame head coach Kliff Kingsbury and quarterback Kyler Murray in the aftermath of the Arizona Cardinals‘ late-season collapse, which concluded with an embarrassing loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the NFL playoffs.
But another person should not escape criticism, according to one ESPN analyst.
ESPN’s Mina Kimes blasted the entire organization on First Take on Tuesday, but specifically had criticism for GM Steve Keim and his construction of the Cardinals’ roster.
“The fact that they’re so dependent on a single wide receiver I believe is an indictment not only of their offensive system but their entire roster,” Kimes said. “We try to blame one person after a collapse like this, but this was an institutional failure. We saw a quarterback who was panicking under pressure, a head coach that I believe took too long to make adjustments when his offensive line was getting obliterated by the Rams pass rush and a roster that lacked depth.”
She continued: “And I want to key in on that and the job that Steve Keim, the GM has done, because all season long when Stephen A. (Smith) was putting this team on the top of his A list, and trying to sell them as a Super Bowl contender, I expressed doubt week after week because I saw a lack of depth. You saw it with the offensive line. You saw it in the wide receiver group. You saw it in the secondary, at linebacker, going back-to-back with those off-ball linebackers who couldn’t even see the field because they didn’t trust them to stop the run and that’s what concerns me so much about this team going forward, going back to the original question about their ceiling. I look at this roster and I don’t see them getting better and that’s a problem.”
More: Arizona Cardinals should fire Kliff Kingsbury as head coach, poll results say
Arizona’s meltdown last night can’t be pinned solely on Kyler, or Kliff: It was an organizational collapse—and revealed the team’s lack of depth. pic.twitter.com/AiDrb4p2X7
— Mina Kimes (@minakimes) January 18, 2022
Kimes wasn’t the only person to call out Keim and the construction of the Cardinals’ roster in the wake of the team’s loss to the Rams and collapse at the end of the season.
Several other media personalities and fans of the team slammed the general manager on social media in the aftermath of the team’s loss in Los Angeles.
Some even called for Keim to be fired.
More: Could Arizona Cardinals fire Kliff Kingsbury? NFL writers speculate about coach’s future
The one consistent characteristic of Steve Keim’s tenure is unwarranted organizational arrogance. It’s the exact wrong environment for Kyler to mature in.
— Jody Oehler (@radiojody) January 18, 2022
All of the Arizona Cardinals problems go back to Steve Keim. Egomaniac. Always thinks he’s the smartest person in the room.
He’s the worst drafting GM since he took over as GM of the Cardinals. If he could ACTUALLY gauge talent, the Cardinals wouldn’t be where they are now.
— Alex Clancy (@ClancysCorner) January 19, 2022
What was Kliff Kingsbury hired to do? Elevate Kyler Murray and make the Cardinals an offensive force. Failed at both.
When the Cardinals needed a leader, Kliff always came up short. He’s never won an important NFL game. STILL.
Fire Kliff Kingsbury. Fire Steve Keim. Start over.
— Alex Clancy (@ClancysCorner) January 18, 2022
Cards won’t be a legit contender until Bidwill fires Steve Keim and Kliff Kingsbury.
— Matt Murphy (@MattMurph24) January 19, 2022
I know everyone’s discussing if Kliff Kingsbury is the right answer for Kyler and Arizona, but I think it’s also very fair to question whether Steve Keim should be the GM#Cardinals #GM #NFL #NFLPlayoffs
— YardsAfterContract (@after_yards) January 19, 2022
Gonna be hard to gain local and national fan trust unless something is done. Starts with Steve Keim and his inability to create a roster in which can handle adversity. He has wasted years of top picks for them to play elsewhere or not play at all. He must go #FireKeim
— Cory (@cdh_03) January 19, 2022
Where exactly were the 2020 & 2021 first round picks last night?
Anyone trust Steve Keim’s ability to draft, develop or KEEP his own draft picks ?
Fact
Humphries is the ONLY 1st round pick since 2013 that is on his 2nd contract.
— RLatimer (@RLatimer6) January 19, 2022
You have to get rid of GM Steve Keim first if you’re the Cards. Terrible draft classes and too many FA busts.
— Matt Murphy (@MattMurph24) January 19, 2022
Keim must go! He’s the one putting the team together
— Jimmy Salazar (@Jimmydaman50) January 18, 2022
Interestingly, an azcentral sports Twitter poll asking who is most to blame for the Cardinals’ end-of-season collapse was easy on Keim’s role in the Cardinals’ struggles.
More than 51% of respondents voted that Kingsbury deserved the most blame, with more than 27% voting for quarterback Kyler Murray.
More than 14% answered that it was “the players” that deserved the most blame.
Keim received just over 5% of the votes.
How much blame do you think the GM deserves for the Cardinals’ woes?
More: Arizona Cardinals’ Kyler Murray slammed for NFL playoff performance vs. Los Angeles Rams
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Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Cardinals’ Steve Keim called out for loss to Los Angeles Rams