Cardinals' Jonathan Gannon: Eagles Offered Bigger Contract to Stay as DC Than Be a HC

Jonathan Gannon is happy with his decision to become the Arizona Cardinals' head coach, and he revealed that he had to turn down a major offer to remain the Philadelphia Eagles' defensive coordinator in order to do what he felt was best for his career.

"I loved Philly. I love Mr. Lurie [owner Jeffrey Lurie]. I love Howie Roseman. I love Nick Sirianni. They came back, and they were like, here's a new offer. It's gonna pay you more than being a head coach," Gannon told Football Morning In America's Peter King. "That's cool and I loved it there, but I wanted to be a head coach, and I was excited about this because of Mr. Bidwill—Michael, as he would say—[GM] Monti Ossenfort and Kyler [Murray]."

It should come as no surprise that the Eagles would want to hold on to Gannon, as the team boasted one of the best defenses in the NFL last season. Philadelphia led the league with 70 sacks, ranked first in passing defense (179.8 yards allowed per game) and ranked second in total defense (301.5 ypg).

Gannon's unit helped power the Eagles to a 14-3 record and a run to Super Bowl 57. Philadelphia fell short in a 38-35 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, giving up 24 points in the second half and surrendering a go-ahead drive late in the fourth quarter that culminated with a game-winning field goal by Harrison Butker.

The Cardinals reportedly hired Gannon to a five-year contract to replace Kliff Kingsbury, who was fired last month after going 28-37-1 in four seasons as head coach. The departure of Gannon left the Eagles having to fill both coordinator spots, as offensive coordinator Shane Steichen was hired as head coach of the Indianapolis Colts.

Gannon has wasted no time in his new role with Arizona, as ESPN's Josh Weinfuss reported Sunday that he has hired Eagles linebackers coach Nick Rallis as the team's defensive coordinator and Cleveland Browns quarterbacks coach Drew Petzing as offensive coordinator.