Former Titans Assistant a Head Coach Candidate

Jonathan Gannon, a member of Mike Munchak's staff a decade ago, has been the Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator for one season.
Bill Streicher/USA Today Sports

A former Tennessee Titans assistant coach will talk at least one NFL team currently in search of a head coach.

Jonathan Gannon, a member of Mike Munchak’s staff in 2012 and 2013, will interview with the Denver Broncos, who fired Vic Fangio on Monday.

Gannon, who turned 39 last week, is the Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator. He confirmed Tuesday that the Broncos have requested permission to interview him as he and his current team prepare for their playoff opener, Sunday against Tampa Bay.

He was a defensive quality control coach for two seasons under Munchak and defensive coordinator Jerry Gray.

Gannon spent the next three seasons in the same role with the Minnesota Vikings when Gray was that team’s defensive backs coach. It was there that he crossed paths with current Broncos general manager George Paton, who was Minnesota’s director of player personnel and assistant general manager during that time.

Gannon’s climb up the ladder began in earnest when he was hired as Indianapolis’ defensive backs coach in 2018. He remained in that role until the Eagles hired him.

He also spent time as a college and pro scout with the St. Louis Rams (2009-11).

To date, the Broncos have requested interviews with nine candidates, per NFL.com, the majority of them with a background on offense. That group includes one, Dan Quinn, who has been an NFL head coach, and several high-profile coordinators such as Kansas City offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy.

“I think Jonathan would be an awesome head coach,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said recently, via PhillyMag.com. “… I really want to keep him here because I think so highly of him. But I think he would be awesome, again, for the same reasons that I hired him to be the defensive coordinator… the same reasons I think he would be a really good head coach.”


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David Boclair
DAVID BOCLAIR

David Boclair has covered the Tennessee Titans for multiple news outlets since 1998. He is award-winning journalist who has covered a wide range of topics in Middle Tennessee as well as Dallas-Fort Worth, where he worked for three different newspapers from 1987-96. As a student journalist at Southern Methodist University he covered the NCAA's decision to impose the so-called death penalty on the school's football program.