Jen Welters will be the first female to hold a coaching position ever in the NFL. In the past two years of coaching for the Arizona Cardinals as if it wasn’t enough for Bruce Arians to have the reputation of assembling a mix of young and older assistants between the ages of 20 to their late 70s; this year, Arians decided to broaden the diversity and take things to a new level.
We can definitely say the Cardinals are opting to do it different this year. First, a female coach and the creation of the Bill Bidwill Coaching Fellowship (named after the owner of the Cardinals); with former Steelers linebacker Levon Kirkland spearheading as an inaugural participant. When talk was going on last season about Arians’ thoughts on Sarah Thomas becoming the NFL’s first female official, his response that it would be reasonable to think a woman could also coach in the NFL should have led us to the direction of the move he was planning for the coaching staff of the Cardinals.
Well, I guess training camp will say it all as Welters will be among seven coaching interns working with the team this summer. On Monday, she was officially hired as an assistant coaching intern for the Cardinals training camp and the preseason to work with inside linebackers. We wish much success to the 37-year-old former Dallas Diamonds of the Women’s Football Alliance who’s spent 14 years as a professional football player. One would would think as long as she can make the players better, they would be OK with it. She’s won two gold medals as a star athlete and is no stranger to football. According to ESPN: “Welter, 37, has been making history throughout her career. In February, she became the first female coach in a men’s professional football league when she was hired by the Texas Revolution of the Indoor Football League to coach linebackers and special teams.”
Jen Welters’ tweet after the announcement was made:
What are your thoughts on the decision to add a female coach to the NFL?
