It wasn't difficult for Arizona Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon to pinpoint their biggest hole in their tough loss to the Seattle Seahawks, 23-20, at State Farm Stadium on Thursday.
The Cardinals put up a valiant effort in the fourth quarter, tying the game at 20-20 in the final seconds after being down by as much as 14 points. Their furious fightback, however, fell short after kicker Jason Myers converted the game-winning field goal for the Seahawks.
After the game, Gannon rued their shortcomings on offense. They didn't score a touchdown until the final period, as they slogged through for the majority of the contest.
But instead of calling out his players, the 42-year-old coach took full responsibility for their subpar showing. They fell to 2-2 after dropping their second straight assignment.
“We do have to take a good, hard look at what’s going on and adapt. If we keep doing the same thing in my mind, when you’ve been in the NFL long enough and you have these stretches where you feel like you’re letting some games slip away when you keep doing the same thing and hoping, that’s not good coaching,” said Gannon, as quoted by Cardinals reporter Darren Urban.
With back-to-back losing campaigns and zero playoff berths, it's not ludicrous to speculate that Gannon is under the gun in his third season in Arizona. He currently owns a 14-24 record.
Gannon has leaned heavily on quarterback Kyler Murray to deliver. The two-time Pro Bowler struggled with 27-of-41 passing for 200 yards against the Seahawks. While he threw for two touchdowns, he was also intercepted twice and was sacked six times.
Wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. had six receptions for 66 yards and the game-tying touchdown in the fourth quarter. Running back Trey Benson had eight carries for 35 yards, while Murray had five runs for 41 yards.
After four games, the Cardinals are averaging 164.8 passing yards and 105.8 rushing yards per game.
