ESPN report: Former Arizona Cardinals exec files grievance against owner Michael Bidwill

Former Arizona Cardinals senior personnel executive Terry McDonough has filed an arbitration claim to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell accusing team owner Michael Bidwill of gross misconduct, including cheating, discrimination and harassment, according to a detailed report released Tuesday by ESPN.

The allegations include that both McDonough and former Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks were coerced by Bidwill into using burner phones to communicate with then-general manager Steve Keim during Keim’s five-week suspension in the summer of 2018 after pleading guilty to extreme DUI in Chandler.

ESPN reports that McDonough claims he still has the phone, which he says contains the evidence of the cheating scandal in addition to other documentation.

ESPN described McDonough as a “former” employee. He had been with the Cardinals since 2013, serving as a scout and then as Vice President of Player Personnel (2014-2018) until apparently being demoted into his senior executive role, and as of Tuesday afternoon his name had been removed from the list of staff members on the team's website.

Wilks was fired after one season as head coach. Keim, according to Bidwill, stepped down as GM at the end of this past season for health reasons and resigned from the organization.

In the arbitration filing, per ESPN, McDonough and Wilks “objected to and sought to avoid participation in a scheme hatched by Bidwill to utilize burner phones to communicate with Keim.”

Read more: Who is Arizona Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill?

According to ESPN, the filing also reads that “In response to McDonough’s objection to the illicit burner phone scheme, Bidwill cursed at, berated, and formally reprimanded McDonough, and ultimately demoted him – and irrevocably damaging the trajectory of McDonough’s 34-year career in the National Football League.”

The filing also reportedly states that “Bidwill subjected McDonough to bullying, mocking, harassing and abusive behavior.” The grievance contends other charges against Bidwill, such as treating a Black employee and two pregnant women poorly, citing the owner “created an environment of fear for minority employees.”

McDonough is seeking damages for breach of contract and emotional distress, according to ESPN.

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The Cardinals strongly denied the allegations in a detailed response to ESPN, calling the arbitration filing “outlandish.”

“We are reluctantly obliged to provide a public response along with broader context for some disappointing and irresponsible actions by Terry McDonough,” said Jim McCarthy, an external public relations advisor to the Cardinals. “Claims he has made in an arbitration filing as wildly false, reckless, and an opportunistic ploy for financial gain.

“Our position was consistent with many efforts we’ve made to accommodate Terry during his time with the team, despite difficulties in his personal life and his often volatile demeanor toward colleagues,” the statement from McCarthy continued. “That’s why we are addended to see that Terry is now lashing out at our organization with disparagements and threats that are absurdly at odds with the facts. This unnecessary vindictive action by Terry was intended to malign his co-workers, our owner Michael Bidwill, and our team with outlandish accusations.”

Previously: Arizona Cardinals slammed for facilities, treatment of families in players survey

As for the claim by McDonough that Bidwill directed the use of burner phones to improperly stay in communication with Keim during Keim’s suspension, the team reportedly told ESPN that another unnamed executive “had interfered with the protocol of that suspension” and that the team had taken “additional measures.”

The Cardinals, per ESPN, claim they took “swift action” and directed that phones be retrieved and “communications stopped.”

The NFL told ESPN on Tuesday that it had received the arbitration claim. The Cardinals have 20 days to formally respond to McDonough’s charges under the NFL’s dispute resolution procedural guidelines. Goodell will then determine “whether the dispute is football-oriented … or not football-oriented,” and whether the dispute is subject to arbitration.”

McDonough isn’t the only former Cardinals employee to file an arbitration claim against the Cardinals to Goodell.

In December, Sean Kugler, filed a similar motion with the league a month after being fired as the Cardinals’ offensive line coach/run game coordinator. He was relieved of his duties for allegedly groping a woman while the team was in Mexico City to play a regular season game against the 49ers.

His lawyers contend Kugler was fired without an interview or “extensive review” of the matter and Kugler released his own statement through his representatives, saying, “Respecting women is a core value for me, and something I have instilled in my children and the players that I coach. The mysterious allegations by the Cardinals are untrue, and I want to clear my name.

“Be it miscommunication or mistaken identity, my family and I will cooperate fully and honestly with the NFL, Cardinals or any other agency to get to the truth in this matter to restore my reputation.”

There have been no updates regarding Kugler’s arbitration claim.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Report: Terry McDonough files grievance against Cardinals owner