Mike McCoy was blunt, when asked if his offensive playcalling was about scheme or matchups.
"Players," he said, and that's always the ultimate answer.
As an incoming coordinator, McCoy was probably never going to have a lot of specifics. He was just hired, and even if there was a quarterback in place, a change in head coach usually means a change in the roster anyway. Besides, he still has to evaluate the guys who are on the roster in the first place. Then you add in all the uncertainty on that side of the ball, because of impending free agency with so many (and the question of Larry Fitzgerald's future, although more on that in a moment) and McCoy didn't have the specifics I'm sure many wanted to hear. It isn't feasible yet.
But it always comes down to players.
That can get lost, and yes, coaching matters. McCoy's best time as an OC came when Peyton Manning was in his Denver heyday in 2012, but that shouldn't be a negative. It's a fact, just like Bruce Arians was at his best offensively when Carson Palmer had his best season in 2015 or that Ken Whisenhunt had his best offense when Kurt Warner stepped forward in 2008-09.
It's impossible to know what the Cardinals' offensive personnel might be. McCoy talked about wanting to win, regardless of how pretty it might look. He did that in 2011 with a Broncos offense using Tim Tebow(!) to win a playoff game and leading the NFL in rushing. He threw plenty with Manning and Philip Rivers. The Cardinals have one of the best dual-threat running backs in the league in David Johnson and I'm guessing he'll do a lot of both -- because why wouldn't he? McCoy is smart enough to know what he has.
Speaking of which, McCoy sure sounded like a guy who expects Fitzgerald to play, which continues to be the guesstimate put out by those closest to Fitz, like his dad or Warner. "We might shift some things we wanted to be our core, then we'll go the other way," McCoy said. " 'We're better at this.' 'David likes these runs.' 'The quarterbacks like these plays.' 'Larry, this is what he loves. This is what he's good at it.' We've got to learn a lot about the players too." That sounds like a guy thinking Fitz will be around.
