Two former Arizona Cardinals staff members — an executive assistant and a former coach — have accused principal owner Michael Bidwill and the National Football League team of discriminatory treatment because of their race.
A federal judge has sent the claims to an NFL arbitration process because disputes arising from their employment contracts are subject to arbitration. The NFL commissioner's office is to participate in selecting the arbitrator.
Bidwill, Chief Operating Officer Jeremy Walls and the Cardinals organization were listed as defendants in the lawsuit filed jointly by Kendra Hogue, Walls’ former executive assistant, and Don Shumpert, a former coach in the organization. Walls announced in August that he planned to step down from his
role at the end of the 2026 season.
Hogue and Shumpert asked for damages for seven claims, including racial discrimination, retaliation, defamation and constructive termination — which occurs when a worker is compelled to resign because of hostile work conditions. Hogue and Shumpert are Black.
"The team strongly denies these claims and will prove they have no merit," the Cardinals said in a statement provided to The Arizona Republic. "Because it is an active legal matter, the team will refrain from further comment."
The lawsuit was initially filed in Maricopa County Superior Court on May 26, before the Cardinals petitioned to move the lawsuit to federal court, which occurred June 1.
After a Sept. 19 hearing, Tucson-based U.S. District Court Judge John Hinderaker ordered that the case be sent to arbitration, with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell authorized to select the arbitrator, according to notes on the federal court docket. Hinderaker asked that a report be filed with the court every 120 days and that the court be notified when arbitration concludes.
Bidwill was sued in 2023 and 2024 by former executive Terry McDonough due to defamation and other claims. Then, last year, he was sued by former assistant Brittany Neuheisel on claims that included age and gender-related discrimination. Both were referred to NFL arbitration.
Former executive assistant Kendra Hogue alleges discrimination
Hogue worked for the Cardinals from Sept. 9, 2024, to Nov. 8, 2024. Her allegations center on the workplace treatment she faced in her two months with the organization.
“During the course of her employment, Hogue was subjected to a toxic work environment characterized by retaliatory behavior, managerial dysfunction, and mistreatment, which materially altered the terms and conditions of her employment,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit adds: “As an African American woman, Hogue was subjected to disparate treatment.”
It was not clear specifically what this treatment entailed. The lawsuit contends the defendants “permitted working conditions so intolerable that a reasonable person in Hogue’s position would have been compelled to resign.”
Why ex-coach Don Shumpert is suing Cardinals
Shumpert’s allegations include more detail.
He joined the staff in 2019 as a recipient of the Bill Bidwill Coaching Fellowship. Initially, he worked as an offensive assistant responsible for tasks such as inputting data and drawing plays.
The lawsuit centers on a period in 2022, after Shumpert said he was told by then-head coach Kliff Kingsbury that he had been promoted to running backs coach. According to the lawsuit, the Cardinals did not communicate the details of his role change, and Shumpert continued to work the two jobs throughout training camp and to start the season.
On Sept. 26, 2022, he met with Kingsbury and then-general manager Steve Keim about his pay. Kingsbury and Keim told Shumpert that they could not increase his pay, and that he would have to speak to Bidwill.
Shumpert never received a pay raise. Instead, he was fired on Oct. 3, 2022.
“During this conversation, Kingsbury told Shumpert the reason he was fired was because he had conversations with Adrian Wilson, the former vice president of the Cardinals, about his contract, which was unfortunately another lie,” the lawsuit said. “The Cardinals’ pattern of lies continued when they sent Shumpert an email giving him the reasons he was fired, citing attempts to delegate job duties to other members of the staff without authorization.”
The lawsuit — which misspelled "Bidwill" in a few spots — adds that the Cardinals fostered “a discriminatory and hostile work environment in which senior executives, such as Michael Bidwell, visibly and verbally demeaned Shumpert.”
At the time, the Cardinals were the only NFL organization that charged players for take-home dinners and offseason meals, according to the 2023 NFL Players Association report card. Shumpert’s lawsuit notes that coaches were also forced to pay for their offseason meals.
“One evening as Shumpert was leaving work, Cardinals owner Michael Bidwell scowled at Shumpert as he simply took two water bottles from the fridge,” the lawsuit alleges. “Bidwell proceeded to ask Shumpert if he was going grocery shopping before shaking his head and walking away.”
On the subject of discrimination, the lawsuit notes that Shumpert began a new role working with the wide receivers in February 2022, but that he did not officially receive the title of assistant wide receivers coach. During the previous season, “the Cardinals promoted two white coaches, giving them new titles and contracts for doing the exact same job they were doing before,” the lawsuit says.
After his termination by the Cardinals, Shumpert was unable to land another job in the coaching industry. He is currently working in the financial services industry, according to his LinkedIn page.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Cardinals, Michael Bidwill sued by former coach, executive assistant
