Jonathan Gannon’s advice for Eagles successor Sean Desai may offer the best clue about a Super Bowl failure

INDIANAPOLIS — It took only two questions before Jonathan Gannon was asked about the Super Bowl.

Two weeks ago, the new Arizona Cardinals coach was asked in general terms about the Eagles’ loss during his introductory news conference, and he addressed his defense’s dismal performance in the second half with minor detail in an interview with NBC Sports a few days later. But Gannon had yet to face questioning from Philadelphia-area reporters.

Until Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine.

Gannon didn’t offer much more than he did previously: He said he “could have done a better job of coaching a couple of things I want out of the calls,” and when a follow-up asked for specifics, he said, how “we set up a couple calls … situationally I could have put our guys in a better spot.”

Several other unrelated topics were broached before Gannon was asked again about the Super Bowl, in particular his game plan for stopping Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

“I’ve answered two questions about that,” he said from atop a podium at the Convention Center. “Sorry, I’m going to not talk about that one. I’ve kind of moved on from that. Just always, guys, when you’re the leader of a unit or the leader of a team, everything that goes on on that field is my responsibility.

“Obviously, them scoring what they scored, how the second half went, I didn’t do a good enough job.”

If Gannon had made himself openly available following the Eagles’ 38-35 loss to the Chiefs in Arizona, there might not have been a need to dredge Super Bowl LVII up again. But it’s unlikely some in the public would have ever received the closure they sought — even if he spoke — for how a second Lombardi Trophy slipped away.

Ultimately, it probably doesn’t matter what Gannon had to say about the game. It’s up there on film to see. He didn’t have a great day, but neither did his players, and Chiefs coach Andy Reid and Mahomes needed only a crack — although there were more than a few — to break the Eagles defense.

» READ MORE: Jonathan Gannon and James Bradberry were a study in character and contrast after the Eagles’ Super Bowl loss

Gannon may end up the face of a devastating defeat among Philly’s faithful, but if there was a G.O.A.T. on the field at State Farm Stadium, he was under center.

Gannon would later say he had no official knowledge of the Cardinals’ interest in him until Eagles general manager Howie Roseman told him after the Super Bowl that he would be staying to interview. But there were strong indications before that Sunday that the 41-year-old would be Arizona’s next coach.

And the Eagles, despite the Super Bowl and Gannon’s poor record against top-level quarterbacks, tried to keep him. His defense did improve significantly last season, but it may have been timing more than anything that factored into Roseman and coach Nick Sirianni’s efforts to retain the defensive coordinator.

While Dennard Wilson was an in-house candidate to replace Gannon, Sirianni wasn’t as set on a defensive succession plan as he was on the other side of the ball with quarterbacks coach Brian Johnson poised to step into the offensive coordinator vacancy once Shane Steichen left to become the Colts’ coach.

The Eagles are, if anything, exhaustive in their coaching searches. And Sean Desai, who was officially hired to succeed Gannon on Tuesday, was on the radar from the outset. But they didn’t have the luxury of surveying the entire field of possible choices and spent the last two weeks meeting with eight contenders.

» READ MORE: How Temple helped shape new Eagles defensive coordinator Sean Desai

The 39-year-old Desai may prove to be the right man for the job. He had a relatively successful one-year stint in the position with the Chicago Bears before he was collateral damage in coach Matt Nagy’s firing. And he was regarded highly enough that Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll brought him in as a senior assistant last season and implemented some of his scheme.

But Sirianni went into the process of finding his second opposite-side coordinator without a top candidate — unlike two years ago when he went into his interview with the Eagles as Gannon his No. 1 target.

Gannon was a relative unknown, having never called a defense. He turned down what was on paper a more attractive opportunity with the Los Angeles Chargers — maybe one he regretted — but his fast track to becoming a head coach wasn’t slowed by many locals’ opinions of his scheme and play calling.

He won’t call plays for the Cardinals. Nick Rallis will. Gannon was able to wrest the linebackers coach away from Philly even though the 29-year-old also interviewed for the Eagles’ defensive coordinator job.

It’s unclear if he would have been the choice, but Gannon suggested that Sirianni wasn’t initially happy with Rallis leaving.

“We talked about it leading up to the process and he was comfortable with how we did things,” Gannon said. “I actually made a mistake with him early in the process and I apologized for that mistake.”

Gannon, though, offered an immediate promotion and Sirianni has said before that he would not stand in the way of his assistants moving upward.

Wilson, the Eagles’ defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator, has a less certain future. But with his path forward blocked in Philly, he may choose to leave and possibly follow Gannon to Arizona.

“Does the staff dynamic fit? Does Sean have anybody?” Sirianni said when asked about Wilson’s return. “But Dennard’s a great football coach. He’s done an outstanding job. If he’s still our defensive backs coach, we’ll be lucky to have him.”

Desai and Wilson were, ironically, on the same flight from Philly to Indianapolis on Tuesday. The former, who was flown into town for a second interview, sat in the first row of first class, while the latter and other Eagles staffers sat in coach.

The personnel Desai will be in charge of could be a class lower than the group Gannon nearly won a title with. The Eagles have seven defensive starters — defensive tackles Javon Hargrave and Fletcher Cox, linebackers T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White, safeties C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Epps, and cornerback James Bradberry — who are pending free agents.

Roseman may be able to bring back several, including reserve defensive end Brandon Graham, but there will be casualties.

Desai has a chance, though, to cater his scheme to the skills of his players. Second-year defensive tackle Jordan Davis and linebacker Nakobe Dean are likely to have prominent roles next season. Desai comes from the Vic Fangio school, like Gannon did, and employed four- and five-man fronts.

» READ MORE: Eagles analysis: Jordan Davis and the run defense

He also didn’t blitz much in Chicago. But his rush packages were more exotic than Gannon’s.

“Not giving everything away,” Sirianni said when asked about the defining characteristics of Desai’s schemes, “but what I did like is some of the similarities to the things that we do, that we’ve already been doing here on a very successful defense, with different coverages, different run blitzes, things like that.”

No scheme is perfect. Desai’s success or failure will hinge on many factors outside his domain. But Gannon did offer advice for what he can control.

“Go in there and be you,” Gannon said, “and make sure the players understand why you’re doing things.”

It may remain forever unclear what Gannon lost in translation during the Super Bowl.