The Arizona Cardinals hired Jen Welter on Monday to coach their inside linebackers during training camp and the preseason. The team said it believed she would be the first woman to hold a coaching position in the N.F.L.
Welter was a running back and special-teams player in 2014 for the Texas Revolution of the Indoor Football League, a men’s pro league. She coached linebackers and special teams for the Revolution last season.
Four months ago, at the N.F.L. meetings, Cardinals Coach Bruce Arians was asked about the possibility of a female coach in the league.