The Arizona Cardinals fined head coach Jonathan Gannon $100,000 after a sideline incident in which he appeared to hit running back Emari Demercado.
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The incident occurred during last weekend's loss to the Tennessee Titans. Demercado broke through the line of scrimmage for what appeared to be a 72-yard touchdown. This play would have increased the Cardinals' lead over the Titans to 27-6.
However, the running back dropped the ball before entering the end zone, turning the play into a fumble out of the back of the end zone. This resulted in a touchback for the Titans. Gannon responded by storming up to Demercado on the sidelines and getting in his face. Gannon swiped his arm as he walked away and appeared to hit the running back.
Arizona Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon gotta be fire immediately You can't put hands on players like this. Because if a player did this he'd be out of the league immediately pic.twitter.com/HCYzmiUXZK
— 112 Fighting Sports (@112FIGHTNSPORTS) October 6, 2025
"I apologized to Emari and I apologized to the team," the head coach said on Tuesday. "I just told them I let the moment of what happened get the better of me there. I try to be emotionally stable and calm, because my job is to solve problems during a game and lead the charge on that. It's not who I am, who I want to be."
The 42-year-old Gannon said that he woke up after the 22-21 loss to the Titans "not feeling great" about the incident. He added that Demercado would not face any repercussions for fumbling on this play.
According to NFL insider Tom Pelissero, Gannon will not face any discipline from the league. The insider obtained a statement in which the NFL said it had been in contact with the NFL Players Association and the Cardinals. The team addressed the situation, so the NFL did not have to get involved.
Gannon, a former defensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles, took over as head coach of the Arizona Cardinals in 2023. The team has compiled a 14-25 win-loss record since the coaching change.
