Jonathan Gannon, Arizona Cardinals head coach, issued a public apology to his running back Emari Demercado. We were lamenting about it during a Real Time Creative team meeting on Monday. Demercado’s apology came after a disappointing performance against the Tennessee Titans. In the fourth quarter, intending to just jog into the end zone, he dropped the ball a yard or so short of crossing the goal line, losing out on a likely 72-yard score.
The incident happened with approximately 12:40 left in the game, which could have put the Cardinals ahead 28-6. The Titans took full advantage of the mistake. They went on to score on that next drive, igniting a furious comeback that would carry them all the way to their first win of the season. This loss was a gut punch to the Cardinals, as it was one of the more painful defeats in recent franchise history. Teams that are down 22 points entering the fourth quarter have a historical winning percentage of .00007. Since their first season 25 years ago, they’ve racked up 1,276 wins to one loss.
Gannon confessed that his reaction during the game was from accumulated exasperation. Mainly he felt trapped on the razor’s edge of blunder and penalty that had led to the situation. He almost did, but changed his mind and didn’t bench Demercado for that play. He communicated the message that the running back would suffer no repercussions for his error.
“I just told [the team], I kind of let the moment of what happened get the better of me there,” Gannon stated. Now granted, I don’t want to be emotionally unstable and have a wide emotional range because again, my job is more of a problem-solver in-game and leading that charge. Here are some of the things I told the fellas this morning. I explained to them that who I am isn’t really who I want to be.
Gannon testified that he struck Demercado’s arm as he walked away from the incident. This contact even further contributed to the tension that was mounting on the sidelines. Reflecting on his reaction after the game, Gannon admitted he did not feel good about it upon waking up the next morning.
“Absolutely the right thing for the team,” Gannon said of his decision to speak directly to Demercado about the situation.
Gannon wasn’t shy about addressing the incident with Demercado directly. He made the decision to place Tip Reiman on injured reserve for an ankle injury, ending his season. This social media-related announcement would serve as another blow to a Cardinals team that is already reeling from a myriad of terrible performances on the field.
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