Newly retired Panthers QB Will Grier lands coaching job with Cowboys

Alex Zietlow, The Charlotte Observer on Jul 24, 2026

Published in Football

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Will Grier retired as a football player earlier this month.

But he hasn’t retired from football.

The former Carolina Panthers quarterback and Charlotte-area native has been hired by the Dallas Cowboys as an assistant coach, the team announced Friday afternoon.

Grier spent a bulk of his career in Dallas, and he even reportedly was offered an assistant coaching job there after the 2025 season before ultimately deciding to sign with the Panthers as a player in April.

Grier will now work closely with a quarterback room that includes Dak Prescott, Joe Milton and fellow former Charlotte-area star Sam Howell.

The 31-year-old signal-caller has spent a lot of time with the Cowboys franchise over the years. Grier was drafted by the Panthers in 2019 — a childhood dream after being one of the best high school prospects in Charlotte-area history — but after two seasons, he landed with the Cowboys. He spent the 2021-22 and 2024-25 seasons with America’s Team.

Grier told The Charlotte Observer in June that he feels like he has his “doctorate in football.” That’s par for the course for someone who’s studied the game as a QB for so long; it’s also understandable considering Grier grew up with a father, Chad, who remains a well-known high school football coach in the area. Chad Grier is currently the head coach at Providence Day School in Charlotte.

Though Will Grier’s time in Charlotte this time around was brief, Panthers head coach Dave Canales acknowledged that it was impactful. Canales considered Grier a great addition to a quarterback room consisting of Bryce Young, Kenny Pickett (who Grier previously worked with in Philadelphia) and undrafted rookie Haynes King.

“It’s always good, as you’re building your quarterback room, to bring guys in with experience who’ve been exposed to different systems, have seen defenses around the league so they can add value,” Canales said earlier this summer. “We’re all in there to help Bryce. And the more information, the more people we can bring in to enrich those conversations, the better.

“So I’m really happy that Will came and chose to get back here in the Carolinas.”