Coach’s Departure Leaves Philadelphia Eagles in Uncertain Times

Driving through traffic on the way to the stadium on the day of the NFC title game, Jonathan Ganno, sunglasses on and terrified, rolled down the window of his black SUV and looked up at the camera that was filming him along the car. away and said, We’re canceling those guys!andquot;The video was live and the mood was set.Gannon, Eaglesand#039; the defensive coordinator was on his way to Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia at the time, where his team later beat the San Francisco 49ers 31-7.

Gannonand#039’s defense shut down quarterbacks Brock Purdy and Josh Johnson and stamped the ticket to Super Bowl LVII.Gannonand#039’s star in Philadelphia was at the peak of his two-year tenure with the Eagles after the Jan. 29 win His unit racked up 70 sacks in the regular season (third most all-time) and crushed the New York Giants 38-7 in a divisional playoff victory last week In a postgame interview on the field with a local television station, Gannon, who has interviewed for several head coaching positions over the past two recruiting cycles, was asked about his future.andquot;Phillyand#039;s hold me,andquot; he said.

 

“Good, bad or indifferent, I stay there.”Over the next few weeks, everything changed.Looking for a head coach, Arizona Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort called Gannon before the Super Bowl in an unauthorized phone call, a call that later led to charges of abuse. Gannon did not tell the Eagles about it or his intention to interview with Arizona. A league source said the lack of transparency largely frustrated the Eagles because it hurt their ability to retain coveted replacement Vic Fangio.

The Eagles lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 38-35 in the Super Bowl and the defense gave up 17 fourth quarter points. Two days later, the Cardinals hired Gannon and the Eagles began searching an exhausted pool for a new defensive coordinator.Gannonand#039;s departure sent ripples that continue to reverberate in Philadelphia, where his successor, Sean Desai, has been demoted and the Eagles defense ranks at or near the bottom in several statistical categories. .

When Gannon returns for Sunday’s New Year’s Eve game between the Eagles and Cardinals (1:00 p.m. ET, Fox), he will be on the opposite sideline trying to play spoiler against a team struggling to regain its winning streak. Super Bowl format.For Gannon and the 3-12 Cardinals, it’s the “next game on the schedule,andquot; andquot;a really good football team.

The first-year head coach said his mindset is to “compete, compete, compete.andquot;andquot;Probably we didn’t get the job done last year, which some of us have a bad taste in the boo, damn, I wish we got the job done,andquot; Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said andquot;but there were a lot of special moments last year and 2021, and Jonathan Gannon was a big part of that.andquot;I value the relationship I have with him and I always support Coach Gannon…but this is a week where I obviously don’t support him.andquot;DAYS after the NFC Championship game, Gannon got a call from Ossenfort, who was hired on January 16th.Gannon had been on Ossenfortand#039’s radar for a while.

Working for the Tennessee Titansand#039; In the summer of 2022, as director of player personnel, Ossenfort began discussions with potential head coaching candidates he would be interested in interviewing if he became GM. Gannon was one of them.During the January call, Ossenfort congratulated Gannon on making it to the Super Bowl and asked if he would be interested in interviewing the Cardinalsand#039; According to Gannon, when it opens after the Super Bowl.Gannon told GM he was interested but didn’t think the call broke the rules.andquot;[Ossenfort] did not say and#039;An agreement was made and#039;andquot; Gannon told ESPN last week.andquot;I really, honestly, put it away in my mind.andquot;But because the call occurred during non-contact time while Gannon was still a playoff coach, it violated the NFL’s anti-abuse policy.

Ossenfort was hired days after the deadline to ask Eagles coordinators for head coaching interviews.Apart from the Aglojand#039; Not knowing where Gannon and the Cardinals stood put them behind the eight ball, league sources said. At the time, they were confident that Gannon would return for a third season.Instead, Ossenfort did not call Eagles GM Howie Roseman until the Friday before the Super Bowl – about 10 days after the bogus call between Ossenfort and Gannon – and told him he would send Gannon an interview request after the Super Game.

 

Bowl, an Eagles source said.Fangio, the architect of one of the league’s most popular defensive systems, was the Eaglesand#039; the best choice to replace Gannon according to several sources. If Gannon had said he would interview with the Cardinals, the Eagles could have gotten the ball rolling on replacement candidates and, more importantly, alerted Fangio to the potential opening. Fangio signed with the team, signed a two-week contract leading up to the Super Bowl to serve in an advisory role, and was widely admired in the building.But the Miami Dolphins also pursued Fangio.

With the Eagles#039; Apparently the DC job was talked about and he unofficially agreed to join the Dolphins staff to prepare for the Super Bowl. The Eaglesand#039; Sources said the front office tried to get Fangio to leave the Dolphins after learning Arizona was meeting with Gannon, but Fangio had already made up his mind by then.During Super Bowl Sunday morning, it was announced that the Cardinals were scheduled to interview Gannon the next day. Then word spread in NFL circles that Gannon and the Cardinals had done more than anyone let on, according to league sources.Gannon denied this last week, calling it “100% false” that he.