Feb. 23, 2026, 5:00 p.m. PT
Former Washington Huskies defensive coordinator Pete Kwiatkowski is set to join the Arizona Cardinals as their defensive line coach, his first stint in the NFL after 37 years at the college level.
Kwiatkowski, 59, reunites with former UW star defensive back Budda Baker in the desert with the task of improving a pass rush that tied for the third-fewest sacks in 2025 with 30.
The longtime college coach began at Boise State in 1988 after a four-year career playing for the Broncos, where he proved to be a dominant force, earning two All-Big Sky Conference honors and Defensive Most Valuable Player in 1987.
Kwiatowski spent eight seasons in Boise as defensive line, outside linebackers, and defensive backs coach, before he moved around the west at Snow College (1997), Eastern Washington (1998-99), and Montana State (2000-05).
He returned to the City of Trees to work under Chris Petersen in 2006, later following the legendary coach to UW in 2014 to be the Huskies’ defensive play-caller.
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Kwiatkowski went on to coach numerous players into All-Pac-12 honorees and NFL Draft picks, including Vita Vea and Baker, proving to be one of the better defensive coordinators in college football at BSU, UW, and Texas, where he spent the past five seasons under coach Steve Sarkisian.
From Petersen’s tenure at UW from 2014-19, Kwiatowski is the seventh assistant to end up coaching in the NFL, joining Bush Hamdan, Chris Strausser, Scott Huff, Junior Adams, Will Harris, and Jimmy Lake.