Former Vikings assistant hired to be Cardinals new head coach

Former Minnesota Vikings assistant coach Jonathan Gannon has been hired by the Arizona Cardinals to become the team’s new head coach.

On Tuesday, Jonathan Gannon became the third member of the Minnesota Vikings 2017 coaching staff to be hired as a head coach in the NFL after the Arizona Cardinals went with him as their replacement for Kliff Kingsbury.

Gannon was part of the 2017 Vikings staff under Mike Zimmer that included Pat Shurmur and Kevin Stefanski, who both went on to be hired as another team’s head coach. During his time with Minnesota, the Cardinals new head coach had the title of defensive quality control/assistant defensive backs coach.

What will former Minnesota Vikings coach Jonathan Gannon add to the Arizona Cardinals?

After spending the last two seasons as the Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator, Gannon will head to Arizona with the hopes of improving a defense that allowed the second-most points in the NFL during the 2022 campaign.

He’ll also be looking for ways to help Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray reach his full potential. Murray is currently recovering from a torn ACL, but he’ll continue to be Arizona’s starter under center for the next few seasons after signing a massive, multi-year contract last summer.

The Cardinals have only been to the playoffs once in their last seven seasons, and even if they don’t earn a spot in the 2023 postseason, the franchise will be hoping that Gannon will eventually end up as the right guy to help them become a more consistent participant in the playoffs each year.