If there's one thing new Arizona Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon has is bravado.
With the exaggerated confidence he displays, you would never know that the Cleveland native fails almost every time he goes up against a top-level NFL quarterback. For that reason and more, Philadelphia Eagles diehards were thrilled when the Redbirds acquired him just 48 hours after Gannon flat-out choked during the second half of Super Bowl LVII.
Following the surprising hiring of Gannon, many Cards fans tried to make themselves feel better by believing that he would surround himself with experienced assistants. After all, the 40-year-old defensive "guru" had been a coordinator in the league for just two seasons in Philly. Surely, Gannon would go out and recruit some of the attractive names that were available who could help him make a smooth transition into his new position.
Unfortunately, that didn't happen. Someone named Drew Petzing has been brought in to revive a struggling Arizona offense. Even worse, Gannon somehow thinks it's a good idea to have a 29-year-old linebackers coach like Nick Rallis run the defense.
Arizona Cardinals coaching decisions look disastrous
One could only imagine what veteran leaders like Budda Baker and D.J. Humphries are thinking. What this Cardinals squad needed was a head coach who was the exact opposite of Kliff Kingsbury. Instead, owner Michael Bidwill allowed general manager Monti Ossenfort to roll the dice on yet another unknown commodity like Gannon.
It gets even worse after Petzing and Rallis. The rest of the staff consists of "up and comers" like Klayton Adams, Ben Steele, Patrick Toney, Ryan Smith, Drew Terrell and Israel Woolfork. Is this a cruel joke that's being played on us by the Cards front office?
Just this past Monday, Gannon told CBS Sports' Peter King that he'd be adding coaches with "major, major experience" to his group in the desert. Was that just a complete lie, or did veteran assistants like Mike Zimmer and Mike Munchak pass on working for an arrogant individual like Gannon? There's still time for the Redbirds to hire the duo, but it certainly doesn't feel like it's going to happen at this point.
Retaining special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers is the best thing that Gannon has done since he got the Arizona gig. The rest of the staff has been peppered with youngsters who don't appear to be qualified for the jobs they've inherited. It looks like it's going to be another long season for a Cardinals organization that just can't seem to get it right.