2 reasons why the Cardinals might not fire Jonathan Gannon

[ASFN Admin]

Will the Arizona Cardinals fire head coach Jonathan Gannon following this season, one that has been a disaster? There are many reasons why they would.

They have gotten worse as the season has progressed. The defense is bad. Players expected to improve have not.

However, there appear to be two reasons why he might be safe, according to ESPN's Josh Weinfuss.

While Gannon is averaging five wins a season through Week 15 of his third campaign, what he has been successful at is building a culture inside the building. Players like and listen to him, and they've bought into what he's said. He hasn't lost the locker room in what's become a lost season. And that counts for something for an organization that's been to the playoffs three times in the last 16 years.

In addition to being liked by his players, Gannon is liked by his boss. A source told ESPN that Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill likes Gannon, a situation, the source added, that hasn't always been the case with Arizona's head coaches, especially a few years -- and a few losing years -- into their tenure. That, alone, could buy Gannon another year.

The players liking Gannon and the owner liking him are important. The players seem to believe in him. Bidwill appears to be willing to be patient with him, or at least let general manager Monti Ossenfort make that decision.

But also, players liking him and Gannon being able to coach them to the next level is a different story. Eventually, losing will take its toll. Because of how many players they have lost to injury, it is easy to believe they are a victim of circumstance and the message from the coaches can still sound good.

But the real question is whether results would be different had they not been rocked by injuries.

There are three games to go this season. Finishing 3-14 would be their worst-ever season in Arizona. But they do have pretty winnable games this week and next week. All it takes is maybe one win to get people to stop feeling like everything is terrible. Win two of the final three, things will feel like they are going in the right direction.

That might be enough to win over the fanbase that doesn't like Gannon.

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This article originally appeared on Cards Wire: 2 reasons why the Cardinals might not fire Jonathan Gannon

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