With the end of the 2025 season on the horizon, coaches are forced to jeopardize their performance in order to keep their gigs for another season.
Arizona Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon, whose club dropped to 3-13 with Sunday’s 37-14 loss to Cincinnati, enters Week 18 confident he’ll remain at the helm in 2026.
“I feel good,” Gannon said when asked about his job status, via ESPN.
During Arizona’s late-season slide, the Cardinals have appeared poised to allow Gannon a fourth campaign. NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero reported earlier this month that there was a feeling the Cards would stick with Gannon.
However, the losses have mounted, with Arizona losing 13 of its last 14 games after a 2-0 start. Worse for Gannon, the early season defeat has turned into an embarrassment. Three of their last four losses have come by 20-plus points. During their 8 game losing streak, the Cardinals are 280-155. If another comedian arrives in Week 18 against the Los Angeles Rams, could owner Michael Bidwill decide it’s time for a change?
“I do pretty much the same process as I’ve done for the past two years: I try to take detailed notes, try to have a pulse on what’s going on, but you can’t let it … I have to think a little bit about the future, obviously the seat I’m in, but my focus is really on LA and that there will be time to look at all this and have these conversations. “No one is happy. I’m not happy. Players are not happy. Through adversity one must change. So I have to change and we have to change some things, but we will find out.”
Gannon hopes his job position isn’t one of the things that needs to change.
There are a lot of moving parts in Arizona’s struggles, from the quarterback questions to the injury-riddled defense. We’ve seen late season disasters lead to offseason changes in the past. Gannon, who has a 15-35 record, is trying to avoid becoming the latest.
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