Opinion: Did Cardinals Jonathan Gannon cross the line?

Jonathan Gannon (YouTube)

One of the top stories in the fifth week of the 2025 National Football League season came on Sunday as the Arizona Cardinals lost to the Tennessee Titans 22-21. There is actually no way in the world the Cardinals should have lost this game, and the majority of the blame needs to be centred on running back Emardi Demercado, who dropped the football as he went into the end zone. As mentioned in the top five headlines of the week, I am still upset with Demercado, as the Cardinals loss knocked me out in my loser pool.

Demercado’s drop did not impress Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon either. After the ridiculous fumble, Gannon was seen yelling at Demercado and then striking his right shoulder pad in disgust. As a result, Demercado was fined $100,000 by the National Football League for his behaviour. A day after the incident, Gannon was seen apologizing to Demercado.

As the Cardinals fell to two wins and three losses on the season, I understand Gannon’s emotional disturbance. In this era of professional football, it appears Gannon did indeed cross the line when it comes to appropriate conduct in the workforce. We are in a different era now. For decades in the National Football League coaches did not hesitate yelling at players and even making contact with players at times to get their message across.

Demercado, meanwhile, is lucky to still have a job. This was a major mistake he made on the field. The Cardinals had every reason to release him outright this week.