The Packers recently lost defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley when he took the Dolphins’ head coaching position. The seek for his substitute has come to an end.
Green Bay is hiring Jonathan Gannon to fill the DC position, as first reported by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. The previous Cardinals head coach has thus managed to seek out a brand new opportunity not long after his Arizona firing. Gannon was one among three candidates known to have interviewed with the Packers.
Interest in multiple D-coordinator openings was present in Gannon’s case. The Commanders interviewed him once, while the Cowboys conducted a follow-up with him last week. Gannon was also among the many candidates who spoke with the Titans about their head coaching position, but a return to the DC ranks has long been expected on this case. Each the Chargers and Giants were fascinated by Gannon, ESPN’s Rob Demovsky reports. Green Bay moving quickly with this hire can have been a response to the specter of other DC offers being made shortly.
Gannon spent three seasons leading the Cardinals. Hired alongside general manager Monti Ossenfort to oversee a rebuilding effort, Arizona went 4-13 during his first 12 months on the sidelines. The team’s win total doubled in 2024; that encouraging campaign saw the Cardinals in contention for a playoff berth for much of the season. A poor showing after the bye produced only a pair of wins down the stretch, nevertheless.
Expectations were high for Gannon’s team to a minimum of match its success from the prior 12 months entering 2025. Things didn’t go in line with plan, nevertheless. Following a 2-0 start, the Cardinals lost five consecutive one-score games. A win coming out of the bye looked as if it would offer the potential for a turnaround, but as injuries across the roster piled up Arizona ended the 12 months on a nine-game losing streak. Leading as much as ‘Black Monday,’ it increasingly appeared as if Ossenfort can be secure while Gannon can be dismissed. That was indeed the trail ownership took.
Prior to his Cardinals tenure, Gannon coordinated the Eagles’ defense for 2 years. Philadelphia ranked top 10 in yards allowed in the course of the 2021 and ’22 seasons; the team improved from 18th to eighth in scoring defense under Gannon. With the Eagles reaching the Super Bowl during Gannon’s final 12 months in Philadelphia, it got here as little surprise when he received a head coaching opportunity. Expectations will little question be tempered if Gannon, 42, is to get one other HC look in the long run.
Upon returning to coordinator duties, nevertheless, Gannon could once more see quick success. Green Bay largely thrived on defense during Hafley’s two-year run leading the unit. Injuries midway through the 2025 campaign – highlighted after all by Micah Parsons‘ ACL tear – proved to be impactful, and the Packers struggled on defense through the top of the season and within the wild-card round. That didn’t stop Hafley from being among the many top HC candidates during this 12 months’s hiring cycle, and few were surprised when he followed Green Bay colleague Jon-Eric Sullivan to Miami.
Gannon had a lengthy track record of NFL coaching gigs prior to his Eagles coordinator opportunity. Much of that point was spent as a position coach working with defensive backs, and the secondary looms as a unit which could see considerable attention from the Packers this offseason. Gannon will probably be tasked with overseeing improvement on the back end particularly for Green Bay in 2026 as he takes charge of a defense for the second time in his profession.