Dez Bryant blames ‘soft a– world’ for Cardinals coach’s fine

The Arizona Cardinals have reportedly fined head coach Jonathan Gannon $100,000 for his sideline altercation with running back Emari Demercado. 

Gannon was upset after Demercado dropped the football before crossing the goal line on what should have been a 72-yard touchdown that would have put Arizona up 28-6 early in the fourth quarter. Instead, the Cardinals went on to lose to the Tennessee Titans, 22-21. 

An animated Gannon was later spotted getting into Demercado’s face while offensive lineman Paris Johnson Jr. tried to console his teammate, but that apparently cost Gannon the six-figure penalty.

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Dez Bryant did not agree with the Arizona Cardinals fining Jonathan Gannon for berating Emari Demarcado after a costly mistake. (IMAGN/Getty Images)

Former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant was not pleased with the fine.

“I don’t agree with the Cardinals fining Coach Gannon $100k… I believe it only happened because of the soft a– world we live in today…” he posted on X. “If you’re an athlete with any kind of integrity and respect for the game..you’ll understand that situation…This is football..that play clearly cost them the game…I hope this doesn’t cause a weird vibe between the coach Gannon and Demercado..”

Gannon appeared to show remorse for the incident when speaking to reporters on Monday.

Arizona Cardinals running back Emari Demercado (31) reacts on the sideline after fumbling the ball out of the end zone on a touchdown run during the second half of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025, in Glendale, Arizona. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

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“I woke up this morning and didn’t feel great about it, honestly,” Gannon said, via ESPN. “I just told [the team], I kind of let the moment of what happened get the better of me there. Obviously, I try to be emotionally stable and calm because my job is to solve problems during a game and lead the charge on that. So, it’s not really who I am, who I want to be, and I told the guys that today.

“So, it’s a mistake by me, and it’s just like everybody in there, everybody made some type of mistake yesterday, which culminates to why we didn’t win the game, and we can’t let it happen moving forward.”

Head coach Jonathan Gannon of the Arizona Cardinals looks on during the first quarter against the Tennessee Titans at State Farm Stadium on Oct. 5, 2025 in Glendale, Arizona. (Norm Hall/Getty Images)

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This is the first time an NFL head coach has been fined for a player altercation since Bruce Arians, who was coaching the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was disciplined for hitting safety Andrew Adams’ helmet during a wild-card round game against the Philadelphia Eagles. 

The Buccaneers docked Arians $50,000 for the incident.

Fox News’ Scott Thompson and Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.