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Bruce Arians Authors Book About Grooming QBs

The Quarterback Whisperer hit bookstores and Amazon on Tuesday

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Cardinals coach Bruce Arians (right) and former NFL linebacker Takeo Spikes check out The Quarterback Whisperer during Arians' charity golf tournament earlier this month.


Bruce Arians didn't get a head coaching gig until he turned 60, but he was mentoring quarterbacks long before that.

The Cardinals' coach is well known for his tutelage of Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Andrew Luck and now Carson Palmer, and those experiences are the central theme to his book The Quarterback Whisperer: How to Build an Elite NFL Quarterback, which was released into bookstores and on Amazon Tuesday.

Arians, who co-authored the 352-page book with best-selling writer Lars Anderson, reminisces about stories, strategies and the make-up of the star signal-callers he has helped groom. Arians is famous for his coach-'em-hard-and-hug-'em-later style, which even the greats can't escape.

"Bruce is gonna love you when you need some loving, but he's gonna jump on you when you're not doing it right," Manning said in a press release.

Arians was the quarterbacks coach of the Colts from 1998-2000, the first three seasons of Manning's illustrious career. He was the offensive coordinator with the Steelers from 2007-11, helping turn Roethlisberger into a star as Pittsburgh racked up a pair of Super Bowl victories.

He considered retirement after getting fired by the Steelers, but accepted the Colts' offensive coordinator position in 2012 and tutored Luck, then a rookie.

"He made players comfortable around him and let everybody have their own personality," Luck said in a press release. "He didn't force anybody to be someone they weren't. It may sound a little corny or cheesy, but there's merit to that. I felt comfortable being myself and I felt he had my back."

Arians got his big break that year when he filled in as the interim coach for the Colts after Chuck Pagano was diagnosed with cancer. Arians was named Coach of the Year for leading Indianapolis to the playoffs and was subsequently hired by the Cardinals. He has a record of 41-22-1 and a pair of playoff appearances in Arizona, and added a second Coach of the Year award in 2014.

Arians also delves into his personal life in the book, which includes his story as a cancer survivor. Arians is blunt throughout, which is no surprise to those who have dealt with him on a regular basis. Some believe that unflinching honesty contributed to Arians' late start as a head coach, but it seems to have paid dividends with the Cardinals.

"We're a resilient group," Palmer said in a press release. "I think that trickles down from the head coach. I think good teams, really good teams, and hopefully great teams, take on their coach's mentality. I think that's what B.A. brings."

Images from the Arians Family Foundation's charity golf tournament and concert this weekend, which raised money for CASA



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