GREEN BAY, Wis. — After three years trying to maximize Kyler Murray, Jonathan Gannon will now do everything he can to slow him down.
Murray and Gannon each ventured to new stops this past offseason. Murray, a former No. 1 overall pick at quarterback, signed a one-year deal with the Minnesota Vikings, while Gannon agreed to become the Green Bay Packers’ new defensive coordinator. The pair spent three seasons together while Gannon was head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, but the tandem never amounted to much success.
Now they’ll meet again in the Packers’ Sept. 13 regular-season opener against the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. After an offseason full of debate and a two-week training camp battle, the Vikings officially anointed Murray as their starting quarterback for the 2026 season on Tuesday. He won the job over J.J. McCarthy, a 2024 first-round pick who has yet to validate the Vikings’ faith. A true indictment of how uninspiring McCarthy has been to this point is that Murray won the job without either player taking a single preseason snap.
The hope is that Murray, who spent seven seasons with the Cardinals, can drag the Vikings out of quarterback purgatory. He’ll be paired with head coach Kevin O’Connell, whose innate understanding of the position has helped engineer career years for Kirk Cousins and Sam Darnold in the past. Murray, 29, signed a deal worth $1.3 million—a relatively small price to pay if he can experience a resurgence.
Murray, a 2019 Offensive Rookie of the Year, played 87 games for the Cardinals, throwing for 20,460 yards, 121 touchdowns, and 60 interceptions. Coveted for his dual-threat prowess, Murray also rushed for just south of 3,200 yards and 32 touchdowns. He only led the Cardinals to the playoffs in 2021 after starting the season 7-0 and losing six of their next 10 games, including an Oct. 28 meeting with the Packers. Then-starting cornerback Rasul Douglas intercepted a pass from Murray in the waning moments of the game to secure the victory.
Murray met with the Packers again in 2024 and played relatively well, completing 22 of his 32 passing attempts for 214 yards and a touchdown, but the Cardinals lost by three scores. The Packers traveled to Arizona last season and beat the Cardinals for a third time, but Murray was out indefinitely with a foot injury; Jacoby Brissett started in his place.