While the media is busy bashing the Arizona Cardinals for their supposedly pedestrian moves in free agency, head coach Jonathan Gannon isn’t having it.
When free agency started in mid-March, many in the Arizona Cardinals fanbase and around the league expected the organization to dish out some massive contracts to prize free agents. Fortunately, it didn’t happen, and just about everyone in the media and many in the Red Sea are already criticizing the new regime.
But as I’ve said before, general manager Monti Ossenfort came to the organization with a plan, and that plan shows us that he intended to build the Cards through the NFL Draft. And head coach Jonathan Gannon is on board, stating the following:
"“You don’t win any games in free agency. I know that. I feel really good about the pieces we added. We had a very clear vision of why we added them.”"Jonathan Gannon, via Arizona Sports
And Gannon is so right. One look around the league, and you will see plenty of examples of successful teams who’ve built their organizations predominantly through the NFL Draft, including the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles, last year’s Super Bowl participants. While they pulled off a few trades and added key free agents, their respective foundations were built in late April.
Arizona Cardinals coach understands the best teams win through the draft
The Pittsburgh Steelers are arguably the NFL’s most successful franchise of the Super Bowl era, and they haven’t experienced a losing season since 2003. One reason behind Pittsburgh’s perpetual success has come thanks to smart drafting and supplementation through free agency and the occasional trade.
It’s a model all NFL teams need to follow. And while most in the media either can’t understand it or don't want to understand it, it’s clear Gannon and Ossenfort clearly know how to put together a puzzle that could turn the Cardinals into a consistent franchise for the first time in its 100-plus-year history in the NFL.
There are no guarantees this will work, but given the examples we’ve seen from teams who’ve practiced this tried-and-true method, it’s clear that no, free agency won’t get you far. But winning in April will eventually put your team in contention to win in February.
Source: ‘Games aren’t won in free agency’: Gannon pushes back on perception of Cards’ moves, by Tyler Drake, ArizonaSports.com