The Green Bay Packers lost one of their key contributors this offseason. Given the great work he did from day one, it always felt like Jeff Hafley's eventual departure was inevitable; it was a matter of 'when' and not 'if' it would ever happen.
However, the Packers could've done much worse with his replacement. While Jonathan Gannon's hire came with mixed reviews, given his struggles with the Arizona Cardinals, he was one of the best and most prepared guys for the defensive coordinator job.
Perhaps accidentally, it also gave the Packers a big win over one of their divisional rivals, as the Minnesota Vikings will start Kyler Murray at quarterback, the same guy Gannon knew well enough to bench in his final season in the desert.
Jonathan Gannon can expose Kyler Murray in Week 1
While Gannon has said all the right things about his former quarterback, one doesn't have to read between the lines or be a football savant to realize that he wasn't fully committed to him. Otherwise, he would've given him one final chance to prove that he was a starting-caliber guy when he was back to full strength.
Gannon spent years watching Murray every single day in practice. He knows his strengths, but more importantly, he also knows what rattles him, how to get him out of rhythm, and how to make him struggle. And with the season opener marked on the calendar for a while now, he must have a beauty of a plan prepared just for him.
Granted, this is a two-way street. Murray also knows Gannon's coverage and schemes, and he must have plenty of additional motivation to not only start his Vikings stint with the right foot but also stick it to the very same head coach that marked the end of his days in Arizona.
All in all, Murray went 13-17 in his three seasons with Gannon at the helm. He only played one full season because of injuries, and given all the concerns about his work ethic, it became painfully evident that the Cardinals had to move in a different direction.
Notably, Gannon should hold as many grudges against him as Murray may hold toward his former head coach. Both of them made plenty of mistakes, but a healthy or efficient Murray would've probably bought him more time in his first head-coaching stint.
Whatever the case, even without Micah Parsons, the Packers should thrive against Murray with all the new intel they have on him. He's just learning the ropes of a new playbook, new schemes, and new terminology, and Kevin O'Connell won't put that much on his plate right out of the gate.
Winning in a hostile environment is always sweeter, more so against a divisional rival. Gannon has an opportunity to silence the critics while exposing the player who, among other teams, may have cost him his job.
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