CARDINALS NAME JONATHAN GANNON HEAD COACH
2023-02-15 · 2 min read · NFL/Football
Mitchell Leff | Getty Images
The Philadelphia Eagles are short another coordinator after the Arizona Cardinals named Jonathan Gannon as their new head coach.
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Gannon was in Arizona for the Super Bowl last weekend, serving as the Eagles' defensive coordinator and will remain in the desert, having signed a five-year contract with the Cards.
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His hiring came on Tuesday, the day the Indianapolis Colts named Shane Steichen as their next head coach, with Steichen having served as offensive coordinator with the Eagles during the Super Bowl.
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Working in Philly over the past two seasons, Gannon transformed that defense into a top-10 unit in the NFL, with the Eagles, ranked second defensively overall in 2022.
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That unit ranked 20th in the NFL for points allowed per game (26.1) the year before Gannon became the defensive coordinator and steadily progressed over the past two seasons, moving up to 18th in that department in 2021 (22.7) and then eighth over the recent regular season (20.2).
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Philly registered 78 sacks during the 2022 regular season and playoffs, the third-highest tally in NFL history.
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The 40-year-old replaces Kliff Kingsbury, who was axed as Cards' head coach in January, finishing with a record of 28-37-1, making one playoff appearance in four seasons.
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Gannon will be the fourth head coach for the franchise in seven years and he inherits a team facing a potential overhaul as 31 players on the current roster are expected to become unrestricted free agents.
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His hiring marks the first time that a Super Bowl participant lost both its coordinators during the same offseason since Kyle Shanahan and Richard Smith left the Atlanta Falcons after they blew the biggest lead in Super Bowl history at the end of the 2016 campaign.
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Arizona is fresh off a 4-13 season, having made just one playoff appearance since reaching the NFC Championship Game in the 2015 season, with the Cardinals losing to the Los Angeles Rams in the 2021 Wild Card Round.
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Last season the Cards ranked 21st defensively in terms of yards-per-game allowed (348.9) and will be missing some muscle on the defensive line with future hall of famer J.J. Watt retiring.
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Gannon does, however, have some strong defensive players to build on, including linebackers Isaiah Simmons and Zaven Collins along with Pro Bowl safety Budda Baker.
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The Cardinals hold the #3 over pick in the upcoming NFL Draft.
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With this hiring, all NFL head coaching positions have been filled.
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By: Joel Lefevre
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