Jonathan Gannon Putting Hands On Player Was Unprofessional And Apology Doesn't Make Him Soft

You're about to get a quick lesson in how professional football is supposed to work and why Arizona Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon had to apologize for putting his hands on a player who made a massively stupid mistake on Sunday.

So, if you're not ready for some hard truth, then we're done here. Go now. 

Gannon Lost His Temper And $100K

The situation for those unfamiliar: Gannon was livid and showed it when running back Emari Demercado seemingly dropped the football before he crossed the goal line, costing his team a touchdown in a one-point loss to the Tennessee Titans.

By livid, we mean, Gannon cussed out his player. And he manhandled him somehow – it's unclear if it was a shove or slap or what.

The following day, Gannon apologized. And the day after that, the Cardinals fined Gannon $100,000. (Yeah, OutKick's been all over this story).

Anyway, following Gannon's apology and then Tuesday's fine, social media and some media pundits have been calling out the NFL, Gannon, and the Cardinals for being "soft" or whatever insult a real man would hang on a weakling.

Gannon Paid For Being Unprofessional

One of the folks taking the Cardinals and Gannon to task is my friend and OutKick colleague Ricky Cobb, who stirred up the masses by calling Gannon a "cuck."

And, I get it, football is supposed to be about confrontation and testosterone and violence, and we all remember that junior high coach that pushed us around that one time, and we recall fondly that we got stronger for it.

Except …

That's not the NFL.

Professional football is a business, y'all.

And in business there are professional ways to go about things. And Gannon had to take a step back and absorb some punishment the last two days because he was simply unprofessional during that sideline interaction with Demercado.

Kyzir White of the Arizona Cardinals celebrates with head coach Jonathan Gannon following a win against the Dallas Cowboys at State Farm Stadium on September 24, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Mike Christy/Getty Images)

How Ditka, Parcells, Shula Handled Themselves

Disagree? Well, please raise your hand if you think Gannon should not have had to apologize or been fined. 

Now, those of you who raised a hand, assuming you are gainfully employed, raise your hand again if you think it's perfectly acceptable for your boss to physically push you around if you make a stupid mistake at work.

Weird, no hands.

Does that make you soft? 

Mike Ditka, Bill Parcells, Don Shula, and countless other coaches from the NFL's heyday had reputations for chewing out players. They rode players hard both physically and mentally in practices, in meetings and certainly on the sideline.

Parcells once told me a player took a swing at him, and he admits he was hard on players verbally and psychologically. But he never hit a player.

Shula once cut a player and the guy got so crazy he returned to the practice facility the next day with a rifle. But Shula knew where the line was drawn on manhandling players.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - OCTOBER 13:  Head Coach Mike Ditka of the Chicago Bears talks with his player Walter Payton #34 during an NFL football game against the San Francisco 49ers October 13, 1985 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, California. Ditka was the head coach of the Bears from 1982-92. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

Gannon Should Have Cut Demercado

Ditka once famously threw a wad of gum at a heckler at Candlestick Park. He almost once got into a fight with defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan at halftime of a game. But he found a way to never get physical with Richard Dent or Steve McMichael or any other player that we know of.

Were these all-timers soft?

So what would have been the professional way for Gannon to channel his anger? Well, if he was so angry at Demercado, he certainly was within his rights to rip the running back a new one on the sideline. 

But the stronger message would have been to cut him on Monday. Done.

Backup running backs who also play special teams are not hard to replace. There are a lot of them on the street right now.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - FEBRUARY 11: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs reacts at Head coach Andy Reid in the first half against the San Francisco 49ers during Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium on February 11, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

OK For Players To Manhandle Coaches?

One last thing: Let's flip the script.

What right thinking person believes it would be perfectly fine for a player to get physical with his coach?

The entire Earth about lost its collective mind when Travis Kelce bumped Andy Reid during the Super Bowl a couple of years ago. That emotional outburst by the tight end was wrong, most people agree.

So, how can the same people think Gannon's putting his hands on Demercado is perfectly fine? And the coach apologizing and being fined is soft?