Usually when a team finishes with a three win season, it almost always means the head coach gets fired without any questions asked. That’s exactly what happened to Jonathan Gannon after finishing 2025 with a 3–14 record, and 0–6 in NFC West play.
What makes this incredibly difficult is that Gannon was trending in an incredibly positive direction at the end of 2024, getting the Cardinals to eight wins despite barely missing out on the playoffs.
Following up the eight-win season with only three in 2025 and finishing with a top-three draft pick meant that changes needed to be made. Whether it was general manager, coach, quarterback, etc. Change was evident.
But according to sources, firing Gannon wasn’t as easy a decision as people once thought, as he was beloved in the locker room by his players.
“The Cardinals ultimately fired Gannon despite massive locker room support in his favor. There's much to be said about Gannon and the good he did for revamping the culture in Arizona - though losing your final 14-of-15 games makes it tough for any head coach to keep their job.” — Donnie Druin on SI
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The Cardinals ultimately chose to replace Gannon with former Los Angeles Rams’ offensive coordinator, Mike LaFleur, who was one of the facilitators behind one of the most prolific offense in the entire NFL.
LaFleur will have his own set of playmakers in Arizona, with Marvin Harrison Jr., Michael Wilson, Trey McBride, and Jeremiyah Love all looking to be key contributors. If they can all be on the same page…look out.
