TEMPE, Ariz. -- As the 2025 season winds down and the Arizona Cardinals keep piling up losses, the question of coach Jonathan Gannon's future with the organization will start picking up even more steam.
Will he stay, or will he be fired?
Recent history is at even odds on whether Gannon's tenure will end in a few weeks. Of the 12 coaches who have lost 11 of 12 games during a season from 2015 to 2024, six kept their jobs and six were fired, according to ESPN Research. Of those six who kept their jobs, only one, New York Giants coach Brian Daboll in 2024, was not in his first or second season with that team.
Gannon said Monday that he has continued to block out the chatter about his coaching future simply by concentrating on his job. That includes not thinking about how Arizona's injury toll will impact the team's evaluation of him. Gannon said he's "not big picture right now."
"I don't think at all about that," Gannon said. "I control the controllables and focus on Atlanta now."
Gannon said he talks with owner Michael Bidwill every day about his future but said those conversations are about "What are we going to do to get this team rolling?"
The losing, however, has certainly taken its toll on the Cardinals.
"Nobody is pleased. I am not happy. They are not happy," Gannon said. "At this point in the year where we're at, it's tough.
"There's definitely some adversity, a lot of adversity. We've had some tough games, some games we haven't really been in -- in my mind -- in the second half. That stinks and it is hard, but we also know the way out of adversity, the silver lining of adversity is you grow."
In his third season, Gannon has had to navigate losing his starting quarterback -- Kyler Murray -- by Week 6 and playing the most players of any NFL team.
With the Monday after Week 18 quickly approaching, here are the mitigating and aggravating factors that could impact whether Gannon will get a fourth season in Arizona.
The mitigating factors
The Kyler Murray conundrum: Gannon inherited Murray when he was hired, and there was an issue right off the bat. Murray, a first-round pick in 2019, was rehabilitating an ACL injury when Gannon walked through the doors of Arizona's Tempe practice facility in February 2023. Murray didn't return until midway through that season.
The QB revealed this past offseason that he wasn't completely healthy in 2024 because of lingering effects from the injury. Gannon didn't have a fully healthy franchise quarterback for his first two seasons. And then Murray got hurt in Week 5 this season and hasn't played since. For most new head coaches who are looking to build a franchise their way, handpicking their quarterback is a goal. If the Cardinals were to part ways with Murray this offseason, then Gannon -- or whoever the coach is next season -- can decide who they want in that seat.
The positive culture: 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 aggravating factors
The record: This one's elementary: The Cardinals are 3-11 this season under Gannon's guidance and 15-33 in his three seasons with three games left in the 2025 season. The expectations heading into this season were high after he led Arizona from four wins in 2023, his first season, to eight in 2024. Arizona peaked in November last season, when it ascended to first place in the NFC West as late as Week 11. Since that week, which was Arizona's bye last season, the Cardinals are 5-16. In a league where production is paramount, Gannon's record hasn't met the Cardinals' hopes.
The lack of defense: Gannon's record is one thing, but it's how the Cardinals have ended up 3-11 that could be problematic when Bidwill evaluates Gannon's season. Sunday's 40-20 loss to the Houston Texans was the fourth time in the last six weeks that Arizona's defense has given up 40 or more points. It was also Arizona's sixth loss in a row -- and that came after a five-game losing streak earlier in the season. That's problematic for any team trying to stop the hemorrhaging of losses, but even more so for a defensive-minded head coach. Another layer to Arizona's recent losing streak is that three of the four games in which the Cardinals gave up 40 or more points came against their NFC West rivals.
Week in and week out, following Arizona's losses, Gannon has said a version the same things: As the head coach, the losses are on him. He needs to coach better; he knows this team will come out on the other side. While it may just be coach-speak for the media and fans, Gannon's words could be part of what defines the season: He's continually taken responsibility for a product that hasn't improved.