 Whisenhunt in 2014 | |||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born: | (1962-02-28)February 28, 1962 (age 63) Augusta, Georgia, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 233 lb (106 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Augusta (GA) Richmond Co. | ||||||||
| College: | Georgia Tech | ||||||||
| Position: | Head coach | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1985: 12th round, 313th pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
As a player: | |||||||||
As a coach: | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Head coaching record | |||||||||
| Regular season: | 48–71 (.403) | ||||||||
| Postseason: | 4–2 (.667) | ||||||||
| Career: | 52–73 (.416) | ||||||||
| Coaching profile at Pro Football Reference | |||||||||
Kenneth Moore Whisenhunt (born February 28, 1962) is anAmerican football coach and formertight end. He played college football atGeorgia Tech and was selected in the twelfth round of the1985 NFL draft by theAtlanta Falcons, with whom he played for four years. He subsequently played two more years with theWashington Redskins and another two with theNew York Jets.
Beginning his coaching career in 1995, he washead coach of theArizona Cardinals from2007 to2012 andTennessee Titans from2014 to2015. He led the Cardinals to their firstSuper Bowl appearance in franchise history during the2008 season, as well as their first home playoff games in 60 years. However, following the retirement ofKurt Warner, Whisenhunt posted three straight non-winning seasons and was fired by the Cardinals. He was fired by the Titans after compiling a record of 3–20 through1+1⁄2 years. Overall, Whisenhunt posted a record of 48–71 as head coach, including a 4–31 record in his last 35 games as a head coach. Whisenhunt was 4–2 in the playoffs, but missed them in five of his seven seasons as coach.
Prior to and after his tenures as head coach of the Cardinals and Titans, Whisenhunt served as an offensive coordinator to various NFL teams. He enjoyed success he had with thePittsburgh Steelers in his three years as theiroffensive coordinator underBill Cowher and winningSuper Bowl XL over theSeattle Seahawks during the2005 season. Most recently, Whisenhunt served as theoffensive coordinator for theLos Angeles Chargers for four seasons before being fired on October 28, 2019.
After attending theAcademy of Richmond County inAugusta, Georgia for high school, Whisenhunt played college football atGeorgia Tech (1980–84)[1] where he graduated with a degree incivil engineering. During his senior season, he was an honorable mention All-American. He finished first-team all-ACC during his final two college seasons.
His career as a player included four years (1985–88) as atight end with theAtlanta Falcons, who selected him in the twelfth round of the 1985 NFL draft.[3] He had short stints of two seasons each with theWashington Redskins andNew York Jets. He retired from the league in 1993 after nine seasons in which he was mostly known as a blocking back. From 1986–1988 with Atlanta, he accumulated 53 catches for 503 yards with five touchdowns.[4]
Whisenhunt began his coaching career atVanderbilt University, where he coached special teams,tight ends andrunning backs for theCommodores from 1995 to 1996. In 1997, he returned to theNational Football League as the tight ends coach for theBaltimore Ravens. Whisenhunt was a transient in his early years in the league, moving to the staff of theCleveland Browns in 1999 and to theNew York Jets the following season.
In 2001, Whisenhunt was hired by the Steelers to coach their tight ends. He was able to develop players such asMark Bruener andJay Riemersma, both considered past their prime, into excellent tight ends. He also oversaw the early development of tight endHeath Miller, who has been a successful tight end in the league.
Whisenhunt took over the role ofoffensive coordinator in Pittsburgh for the2004 season afterMike Mularkey became thehead coach of theBuffalo Bills. Although his predecessor Mularkey was known for creating flashy trick plays, Whisenhunt showed great success as more of a cautious innovator, whose well-timed trick plays contrasted the conservative Steelers run game.
One of Whisenhunt's most famous moments as a Steeler is the trick play he called inSuper Bowl XL. With Pittsburgh leading 14–10 over theSeattle Seahawks, Whisenhunt called a wide receiver reverse pass (Antwaan Randle El toHines Ward, the first TD pass thrown by a WR in Super Bowl history) that allowed Pittsburgh to extend the lead over the Seahawks.
On January 14, 2007, theArizona Cardinals hired Whisenhunt as their newhead coach, with a contract to receive an average of $2.5 million annually.[5] Whisenhunt had also interviewed for the head coaching position with thePittsburgh Steelers,Atlanta Falcons, andMiami Dolphins. He was previously interviewed to be thehead coach of theOakland Raiders in February 2006, but he pulled out of talks before an offer could be made.[6]
The Cardinals showed improvement in Whisenhunt's first season, finishing 8–8 after finishing 5–11 the previous two seasons and losing 10 or more games in seven of the previous eight campaigns.[7] It was their first non-losing season since1998, though they still failed to make the playoffs.
Going into his second season in 2008, Whisenhunt made the decision to go with veteranquarterbackKurt Warner as his starter. In previous seasons, Warner had split time with the team's youngerquarterbackMatt Leinart, although Warner started the final 11 games of the2007 season after Leinart suffered a season-ending injury. This decision paid off as Warner put up great numbers in leading the Cardinals to a 9–7 regular season record in the2008 season and theNFC West Division championship,[8] the Cardinals' first division title since1975, when the team played inSt. Louis, and the club's first playoff berth since 1998. It also allowed the Cardinals to play in only their second home playoff game in franchise history, and their first since winning the NFL championship in1947, while the team was still inChicago (they never played a home playoff game in St. Louis despite winning two division titles there). After defeating theAtlanta Falcons and theCarolina Panthers in the first two rounds of the NFC playoffs,[9][10] the Cardinals defeated thePhiladelphia Eagles in theNFC Championship Game on January 18, 2009,[11] and advanced to theSuper Bowl for the first time in franchise history to face his former employer, thePittsburgh Steelers. Whisenhunt's Cardinals lost to the Steelers 27–23Super Bowl XLIII.[12]
The following season in2009, Whisenhunt led the Cardinals to a 10–6 record and another NFC West title.[13] In theplayoffs, the Cardinals defeated theGreen Bay Packers 51–45 in a thrilling overtime victory before losing to the eventualSuper Bowl XLIV championNew Orleans Saints 45–14 in the next round.[14][15]
Following the retirement of Warner and a number of other losses at other positions, the Cardinals were not expected to fare well during the2010 season. Leinart had been expected to regain his startingquarterback job. Instead, Whisenhunt installedfree agent pickupDerek Anderson as the starter, made rookieMax Hall the backup, and released Leinart. The Cardinals finished 5–11 and last in the division.[16] In2011, despite ongoingquarterback issues, Whisenhunt and the team management put together a solid young roster that finished with an 8–8 record.[17]
In2012,[18] Whisenhunt guided the Cardinals to their first 4–0 start since1974,[19] when the franchise was coached byDon Coryell in St. Louis. The Cardinals proceeded to lose 9 straight games and in week 14 were blown out by theSeattle Seahawks 58–0.[20] The losing streak finally ended the following week with a 38–10 victory over theDetroit Lions.[21]
On December 31, 2012, Whisenhunt was fired after three straight non-playoff seasons.Rod Graves, general manager at the time, was also relieved of his duties.[22]
On January 17, 2013, he was hired asoffensive coordinator for theSan Diego Chargers, under newhead coachMike McCoy. During the2013 season under Whisenhunt, the Chargers' finished 5th in the league in total offense, compared to 31st theseason before.
On January 13, 2014, theTennessee Titans hired Whisenhunt as their new head coach.[23] Whisenhunt had also interviewed for the head coaching position with theDetroit Lions andCleveland Browns.[24] In Whisenhunt's first year, the Titans regressed heavily from their 2013 mark of 7–9. Tennessee finished the 2014 season with a 2–14 record, tying the Buccaneers for the worst record in the NFL.
On November 3, 2015, after starting the season 1–6, the Titans fired Whisenhunt and namedMike Mularkey the interim head coach. Whisenhunt finished with a 3–20 record during his tenure with the team.[25]
On January 13, 2016, the Chargers re-hired Whisenhunt as their offensive coordinator.[26]
On December 4, 2018, it was rumored that Whisenhunt would take the head coaching job atGeorgia Tech, where he and AD Todd Stansbury played football at Tech together. However, he ultimately turned down the offer, and would remain at the Chargers.
On October 28, 2019, a day after the Chargers defeated theChicago Bears, Whisenhunt was fired. At the time, the Chargers were 17th in total yards and 24th in points scored, including failing to score more than 20 points in October.[27]
Whisenhunt joinedPenn State in 2021 as an offensive analyst.[28]
On February 16, 2023, it was reported the Whisenhunt had been hired byAlabama to serve as the special assistant to head coachNick Saban.[29]
On September 23, 2024, it was announced that Whisenhunt would become the new head coach of theMemphis Showboats of theUnited Football League (UFL).[30] He left the team on March 24, 2025, returned one week later, then permanently resigned on April 16.[31]
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| ARI | 2007 | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 2nd in NFC West | — | — | — | — |
| ARI | 2008 | 9 | 7 | 0 | .560 | 1st in NFC West | 3 | 1 | .750 | Lost toPittsburgh Steelers inSuper Bowl XLIII |
| ARI | 2009 | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 1st in NFC West | 1 | 1 | .500 | Lost toNew Orleans Saints inNFC Divisional Game |
| ARI | 2010 | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 4th in NFC West | — | — | — | — |
| ARI | 2011 | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 2nd in NFC West | — | — | — | — |
| ARI | 2012 | 5 | 11 | 0 | .313 | 4th in NFC West | — | — | — | — |
| ARI Total | 45 | 51 | 0 | .469 | 4 | 2 | .667 | |||
| TEN | 2014 | 2 | 14 | 0 | .125 | 4th in AFC South | — | — | — | — |
| TEN | 2015 | 1 | 6 | 0 | .143 | Fired | — | — | — | — |
| TEN Total | 3 | 20 | 0 | .130 | 0 | 0 | .000 | |||
| Total | 48 | 71 | 0 | .403 | 4 | 2 | .667 | |||
| League | Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | |||
| UFL | MEM | 2025 | 0 | 2 | .000 | TBD | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 0 | 2 | .000 | 0 | 0 | .000 | ||||
Ken and his wife, Alice, have two children: son Kenneth Jr., and daughter Mary Ashley.
Whisenhunt earned the rank ofEagle Scout as a boy.[32]
Whisenhunt is an avid golfer.[33] A native ofAugusta, Georgia, he worked the 18th-hole manual scoreboard as a teenager at theMasters golf tournament, thePGA’s first major of the year. He's played the course on a number of occasions, including May 2008 when he shot an even par 72 that included an eagle on the par-4 11th hole. Whisenhunt contemplated a career inprofessional golf and after retiring as a player in 1993, he spent a year away from football and played golf extensively, including competing in the ’94 U.S. Mid-Amateur at theHazeltine National Golf Club inChaska, Minn. Whishenhunt's best career score is a 65 and he has made two holes in one during his lifetime. He also unofficially has a third, but it went for a three on his scorecard after his original tee shot went in the water for a penalty.[34]
