Arians experienced coaching itch in Week 1
Bruce Arians didn't get through one game as a broadcaster before feeling the urge to return to coaching.
"It started actually in the first game," Arians told Kent Somers of The Arizona Republic. "I knew I was going to miss the players and the locker room. But during Pittsburgh and Cleveland, the first game and the production meeting, seeing the guys, and it grew and grew and grew.
"By Week 8, I was at practice, the defensive back messed up. I went to correct him and said, 'Oops, this isn't my team.' ... It was growing each week how much I missed the locker room and the arena."
Arians joined CBS Sports last spring after retiring on the heels of a five-year stint with the Arizona Cardinals. He was named head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers nine days after his final regular-season assignment.
The 66-year-old turned heads in the middle of the season when he revealed his interest in coaching the Cleveland Browns, who had just fired Hue Jackson.
"The stars just kind of aligned," Arians said of his return to the sidelines. "I wasn't sure one (job) would open that I would want and I actually said no to a couple. And then knowing Jason (Licht), those in the Glazer family close to my grandson, and then Todd's (Bowles) available, Keith's (Armstrong) available, Byron's (Leftwich) available, the whole staff is available. It's like, 'You're supposed to do this, this is like a sign. You have to do this.'"
Arians amassed a 49-30-1 record with the Cardinals, steering them to a pair of playoff appearances.