Bell: Teams should take Cardinals' Ray Horton seriously

• Horton already has interviewed with three teams, saying 'I think I had three outstanding interviews'
• Is Horton a legit candidate or simply being interviewed because of the Rooney Rule?
• Plus, interesting storylines for NFL Wild-Card Weekend

Ray Horton hopes that he's on the verge of getting his big break. Like so many who have toiled for years as assistant coaches -- it's 19 years of climbing the NFL coaching ladder for Horton -- the long-term goal for the Arizona Cardinals defensive coordinator always has been to become a head coach.

He's getting closer. Horton, 52, interviewed with three teams over a whirlwind two days this week as the NFL market opened with seven teams seeking new head coaches. He spent part of New Year's Day interviewing with the Cardinals, then followed that with a session with the Cleveland Browns. The next day, he went back for a second meeting with the Cardinals before interviewing with the Buffalo Bills.

During the interviews, all conducted in the Phoenix area, Horton says that he discussed any and everything related to football. From training camp plans to developing a young quarterback. From offseason conditioning to, in Buffalo's case, the franchise's philosophy for the Toronto market.

He is unsure of what will happen next. He is in NFL limbo.

"I think I had three outstanding interviews," Horton told USA TODAY Sports. "I did not give anyone a reason not to hire me."

Now he waits. While the NFL playoffs kick off with two wild-card games on Saturday and Sunday, and coaches from the four playoff teams with byes are eligible to be interviewed, Horton doesn't have any follow-up interviews scheduled.

Meanwhile, Oregon coach Chip Kelly is the front runner to take the Browns job that Horton interviewed for. Ironically, Kelly also talked to the Browns in Arizona, following the Ducks' victory against Kansas State in the Fiesta Bowl on Thursday night.

Another hot candidate, Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy, has the same type of whirlwind itinerary this weekend that Horton had early in the week. McCoy is scheduled to meet with the Bills on Saturday morning and the Cardinals on Saturday afternoon. On Sunday, McCoy has interviews lined up with the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles.

Despite the intense competition, Horton sounds like he always does. Confident. Respectful. Mellow, with an edge. He swears that extra anxiety is not in the equation for him. The experience of interviewing with the St. Louis Rams last year, he contends, helped this time around with preparation and approach.

"You can only control what you control," he said. "I could control how I interviewed, how I dressed, how I carried myself, how I expressed my philosophies. I did the best that I could. I have no regrets."

Of the seven jobs that opened, the only one that was officially filled as of Friday night was the Kansas City Chiefs' hiring of Andy Reid, who was dumped on Monday by the Philadelphia Eagles. Reid agreed to a five-year contract that includes authority over personnel decisions. Financial terms were undisclosed.

That Horton is in the mix for other openings might seem improbable, given that he has never been a head coach on any level and that the Cardinals just completed a disastrous 5-11 season. Cynics might also contend that he is a candidate because teams must satisfy the NFL's Rooney Rule, which requires that teams interview at least one minority candidate for any head coaching vacancy -- which has undeniably exposed more candidates to more decision-makers since instituted in 2003.

Yet Horton's emergence as a candidate is revealing on another level. A sharp protégé of Pittsburgh Steelers defensive guru Dick LeBeau, Horton has steadily gained respect in coaching circles. Before arriving in Arizona for his first coordinator's job in 2011, Horton went to three Super Bowls as a member of the Steelers staff.

And he's built a solid defense with the Cardinals, who started 4-0 this season before falling into the slide that ultimately cost coach Ken Whisenhunt and general manager Rod Graves their jobs.

Take away the humiliating 58-0 loss at Seattle in Week 14, and Horton's unit was the bright spot. The Cardinals, playing a 3-4 scheme similar to the zone-blitz units in Pittsburgh, ranked 12th overall for yards allowed, and fifth against the pass. The unit also allowed the lowest cumulative passer rating by opposing quarterbacks, 71.2.

Says Horton, "We gave quarterbacks hell."

When Whisenhunt and many of his assistants were fired on Monday, the Cardinals kept Horton, the rest of the defensive staff and tight ends coach Freddie Kitchens. That put Horton near the front of the line to be considered to replace Whisenhunt, while the two other teams put him on their short lists.

"That's a testament to my defensive players," Horton said of his candidacy. "They thrived in the face of adversity. They continued to play at a high level, in all but one game. They were kind of like that movie, 'Courage Under Fire.' "

Horton played 10 seasons as an NFL defensive back, appearing in Super Bowl XXIII with the Cincinnati Bengals and winning a championship with the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl XXVII. To hear him mention his players first when considering his coaching stock says something about him, although he is also a man who can delve deeply into schemes and philosophies. He prides himself on connecting with a younger generation of players.

"I love my players, and it goes both ways," Horton said. "I just saw Jeremiah Trotter's comments about Andy Reid. My players are not going to come out with any comments about me like that."

Trotter blasted Reid, contending that he was out-coached in big games.

Perhaps Horton will eventually get the chance to prove his big-game mettle as a head coach. At the moment, he doesn't sound like a man stressing over the prospects.

He will spend playoff weekend during a two-day getaway in Sedona -- unless of course, he gets a sudden call for another interview.

"I'm in a win-win situation," he said. "If it doesn't happen for me right now, I've got a great defense to come back to. What's not to like about my situation?"

When it comes to picking a head coach, what to like or not like is for others to decide.

"If you want an offensive coach, I'm not your guy," Horton said. "If you want a college coach, I'm not your guy. But if you want a coach who can lead men, I can do that."

Also in play for Wild-Card Weekend:

Who's hot: London Fletcher. The hard part is getting to Sunday with a 37-year-old body that has played 240 consecutive games at one of the game's most physically-taxing positions. Rehab. Rest. Treatment. That's the ticket. Once the Redskins middle linebacker gets to game day, he does not show his age. The spirit and passion take over. Fletcher, a 15th-year vet who won a Super Bowl with the Rams more than a decade ago, is back in the playoffs performing at a high level. He's tallied over 100 tackles for a 14th straight year, and is not slowing down near the finish line. He was named the NFC's Defensive Player of the Month for December, and comes off a big-impact showing in the NFC East-title clinching victory against Dallas -- 11 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 pass defensed.

Pressure's on: John Harbaugh. The Ravens are the only team in the NFL to make the playoffs in each of the past five seasons, but open the playoffs having lost four of their past five games. Harbaugh fired offensive coordinator Cam Cameron a few weeks ago, which doesn't add up when considering their close, long-term relationship. When Cameron was head coach at Indiana, Harbaugh was one of his assistants for a year. The dismissal has the look of a directive from above. Regardless, the heat has turned up a notch. If the Ravens win, figure Ray Lewis will be central to the storyline. If the Ravens get upset by a team quarterbacked by a rookie, a bitter civic rival at that -- there are still hard feelings in Baltimore about the Colts, who were relocated from the Charm City by Bob Irsay in the mid-'80s -- the coach will be positioned for a lot of second-guessing.

Rookie revue: Blair Walsh. The Vikings rookie kicker, a sixth-round pick from Georgia, is money. Walsh converted on all 10 of his field goal tries from 50-plus yards. He was also reliable from shorter distances, heading into Green Bay with a 92.1% success rate (35-of-38) on the season. There's no question which kicker would be most likely to win the game on Saturday night at Lambeau. Mason Crosby, the sixth-year pro, has had his worst season in connecting on just 64% of his field goals -- worst of any NFL kicker who played a full season. Crosby hot on 21 field goals and missed on 12 tries. It's rare that you'd pick a rookie over a former Pro Bowl performer, but if you were choosing sides on Saturday there would be no debate.

Key matchup: Adrian Peterson vs. Clay Matthews. Of the near-record 2,097 yards that the Vikings superstar rushed for during the regular season, nearly 20% of the total came against Green Bay's 17th-ranked run defense. That's two games, 409 yards and an average of 7.4 yards per carry. We know who Peterson would want to open the playoffs against, a week after logging a career-high 34 carries for 199 yards to help Minnesota qualify for the playoffs. This also marks the spot for Green Bay's defense, prompting Matthews to declare this week that Peterson will NOT rush for 200 yards on Saturday night. Love to see how these types of challenges play out. Matthews has made his name as a seriously-skilled pass rusher, and he led the Packers again this season with 13 sacks. But he'd better bring his hard hat and lunch box to the run-stopping efforts to back up his promise.

Next man up: DuJan Harris. The contrast in running backs on Saturday night is striking. While the Vikings roll with Peterson, the Packers running game will likely be carried by Harris, who was signed off the practice squad in October. Harris -- a 5-foot, 8-inch product of Troy who has also had brief NFL stints with the Jaguars and Steelers -- had a career-high 70 yards on 14 rushes last week. With James Starks, once the featured back, listed as questionable due to a bruised knee, Harris will likely get first crack as the go-to back, getting the nod over Ryan Grant and Alex Green. Packers coach Mike McCarthy, whose offense lives and dies with the arm of Aaron Rodgers, said this week, "We don't have a starting running back." Looks that way. The Packers have gone 43 consecutive regular-season games without a 100-yard rusher.

Reality check: Ray Lewis. The Ravens icon revealed on Wednesday that he is hanging it up after the playoffs, following a remarkable comeback from a torn triceps that was first believed to be a season-ending injury. Whether Lewis will ride off carrying the Lombardi Trophy -- ala John Elway and Jerome Bettis -- seems like a longshot. But you never know. Perhaps he has fueled his team with an extra edge that will help win playoff games at Denver or Houston or New England. Regardless, it has been a great ride for 17 seasons and Lewis will get the chance to spend more time with his children, while staying close to the NFL in other high-profile capacities. Will he still be a force for his personal stretch run? Lewis hasn't played in a game since suffering his injury in mid-October. So it's fair to consider the Hall of Fame-credentialed middle linebacker a big X-factor to start the playoffs. His scripted entry into M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday, with his patented dance, "The Squirrel," will be something to watch -- perhaps for his last time in a Ravens uniform.

My road to Super Bowl XLVII goes through … FedEx Field. This has been a long time coming. The Redskins haven't hosted a home playoff game since the 1999 season, when they beat the Lions in a wild-card matchup and D.C. was still abuzz with the aftermath of the Bill Clinton-Monica Lewinsky scandal. In any event, the Seahawks are coming with mirror images of the Redskins -- a hot rookie quarterback, a reliable running game, a veteran coach trying to prove he still has the magic, a flood of momentum. Interestingly, the last two times the Redskins were in the playoffs, following the 2005 and 2007 seasons under Joe Gibbs, they were eliminated by the Seahawks in the wild card round. Both of those results, though, came in Seattle. This time, the Seahawks will need to post the franchise's first road victory since 1983 to advance. Seattle was the NFL's only unbeaten team at home this season, but was just 3-5 away from CenturyLink Field. That underscores the team's rep as a poor road squad. But the Seahawks are, well, trending upward in that regard. They won their last two road games, including a crucial overtime caper in Chicago, when they marched at least 90 yards for the game-tying and game-winning TD drives. This week, two wondrous rookie quarterbacks -- Robert Griffin III and Russell Wilson -- square off. The difference, though, might hinge on which defense can best exert its will. Seattle led the NFL in allowing just 15.3 points per game, but Washington's D has flowed with big plays down the stretch to help the Redskins rank third in the NFL with a plus-17 turnover margin.

Did you notice? The Colts (11-5) were 2-14 last season, but head into Baltimore as just the second team in NFL history to win at least 11 games after winning two or fewer games the previous season. The 2008 Dolphins made a similar leap under Tony Sparano, rebounding from a 1-15 campaign to win the AFC East with an 11-5 mark. So how did the Dolphins fare in the playoffs? They were bounced at home in their playoff opener by…Baltimore.

Stat's the fact: The Bengals, heading to Houston for Saturday's playoff kickoff game, are seeking the franchise's first playoff win since the 1991 season. In that case, they beat an opponent in the wild-card round from Houston. More than two decades later, it's the Texans rather than the Oilers…and another chance to advance.