After trading Kyle McCord away ahead of Sunday’s roster cut deadline, the Green Bay Packers have decided on which player will be their third quarterback to start the 2026 season. That player is the one who got out-dueled by McCord in last Friday’s preseason finale: former Cardinals quarterback Kedon Slovis.
General manager Brian Gutekunst said in his Tuesday press conference that the team plans to sign Slovis to the practice squad, making him the team’s QB3 behind Jordan Love and Tyrod Taylor.
Slovis
had an up-and-down game last Friday, throwing for 223 yards and a touchdown against the Packers’ deep backups. He completed 21 of 35 passes in the game, but he also threw two interceptions, both of them on short passes to the Packers’ backup edge rushers, Nyjalik Kelly and Arron Mosby. Mosby’s pick was a crucial one for the game’s result, coming just after the two-minute warning and allowing McCord and the Packers’ offense to mount a go-ahead touchdown drive to win the game 42-38.
In Arizona’s four preseason games (including the Hall of Fame Game), Slovis went 39-61 passing for 434 yards, two touchdowns, and those two picks. His total passing yardage placed him third among all NFL passers in the preseason, behind Baltimore’s Joe Fagnano (509) and McCord (446).
Slovis went undrafted in 2024 and signed with the Indianapolis Colts as a free agent. He was released at final cuts after that year’s preseason, then spent the entirety of his rookie season on the Houston Texans’ practice squad. After Houston cut him this time last year, the Cardinals picked him up on their practice squad to start 2025 before elevating him to the active roster in October amid an injury to starter Kyler Murray. He suited up in two games and completed one of his two pass attempts for a loss of two yards.
In college, Slovis bounced around between three schools. He started for USC as a true freshman in 2019, but was injured as a junior, eventually leading to a position battle with Jaxson Dart throughout the 2021 campaign. Both players transferred after that season, with Dart going to Ole Miss and Slovis landing at Pittsburgh. Slovis started 11 games for Pitt in 2022, then transferred again, playing a fifth and final year at BYU in 2023.
Slovis brings athletic ability to the quarterback room, however. He posted exceptional times on his 40-yard dash at the 2024 Combine, going 4.55 in the full run with a 1.57-second 10-yard split. Both of those times rank above the 96th percentile for quarterbacks, according to RAS, which make him intriguing as both a developmental player and as a scout-team quarterback to help the Packers’ defense prepare for athletic signal-callers.
Barring an issue on his physical exam, expect Slovis’ addition to the practice squad to be finalized when Tuesday’s transactions are formally filed this afternoon.
