When Norv Turner walked away from the Minnesota Vikings near the end of the 2016 season, he didn’t necessarily walk away from football.
Turner, 65, who has a sizable NFL pension after 32 years in the league, returned to his home in San Diego, took walks along the beach and waited for the right opportunity to return.
That came earlier this month when Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera called Turner and told him he needed an offensive coordinator after firing Mike Shula.
Rivera’s call was not the first one Turner fielded. A couple of head coaching candidates were interested in bringing Turner out of his semi-retirement, including former Panthers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, who was introduced as the Arizona Cardinals’ head coach Tuesday.