Revenge of the Birds
Well, it wasn’t like it wasn’t expected. The Cardinals set a franchise record for the most losses in a season with 14 by getting thumped by the Los Angeles Rams 37-20 in a game that the Rams had nothing to gain by winning.
Today, on “Black Monday,” Gannon was fired. He finished his tenure in Tempe with a 15-36-0 record in just three seasons.
RELATED: CARDINALS FIRE JONATHAN GANNON
Gannon is respected in NFL circles, and it should not take him long to find a coordinator job with another club. Or, he just might slide into another head coaching position.
Numerous media outlets have projected that between four and six head coaches will lose their positions today on “Black Monday.”
Before the end of this season, the New York Football Giants and Tennessee Titans fired their head man, and the Atlanta Falcons did not wait until Black Monday to ax head coach Raheem Morris hours after they won their final game 19-17 over the New Orleans Saints. On Monday, the Cleveland Browns gave the ax to head coach Kevin Stefanski, while the Las Vegas Raiders could not wait for Pete Carroll to turn that franchise around.
The decision to let Gannon walk probably wasn’t an easy one for owner Michael Bidwill. After all, the team has 25 players on IR, of which several were starters, including their leading tackler. One has to wonder what this team could have accomplished if they had been able to place all their best players on the field at the same time. But in his three years with the Cardinals, the team never even sniffed the playoffs.
The NFL is a results league, and losing 13 games in 2023 and 14 this year were just too much to ignore. The quarterback issue was always in flux. The offensive line played horrible.
And now, with the firing of Gannon, the Cardinals must find a new head coach. Keep in mind, because Gannon has been released of his duties, this means his entire coaching staff is now unemployed. The new coach can retain any of the former coaches, but usually, he has his own guys to bring in that he is used to working with. Plus, any of these former Cards assistant coaches will be working to gain interviews with other clubs to ensure they have employment in 2026.
The defense has become the one area that has the fewest issues. This is due to Gannon’s experience leading a defense. Perhaps the new guy should retain the importance of the defense, and perhaps Bidwill will continue with a defensive-minded coach to run this ballclub. Then simply hire a stud offensive coordinator to run that side of the ball.
Some defensive coaches for the Cardinals to keep in mind in their head coaching search:
————————————————————————
Age: 42
DC Los Angeles Chargers
Minter has taken this defense to new heights. His concept is a bit unorthodox in that he has a conceptually-driven system using the 3-4...
