League insider Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reported this week the Minnesota Vikings quarterback competition might not last deep into the 2026 preseason. Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell, though, confirmed Thursday the battle will continue a little while longer.
O’Connell emphasized to reporters, same as he did Tuesday, the Vikings have a plan to decide whether Kyler Murray or J.J. McCarthy will start behind center in 2026. The head coach implied the strategy doesn’t include naming a starter until training camp.
“We have a plan in place to make sure that the decision we make is going to be about what’s best for the Minnesota Vikings,” O’Connell said. “The timeline of that does involve making sure we get our starter ready to go.
“To give an actual date would not necessarily accurate from a portrayal of how we see it, but there is a timeline to make sure that we can allow the competition to continue and advance, and really lay out a training camp that will allow us to do that but also make a timely decision.”
A lot of pundits this offseason have considered Murray the favorite to land the starting quarterback job. The Vikings signed Murray in March to at least push McCarthy in competition this spring.
However, Murray reportedly struggled during the team’s minicamp this week while McCarthy performed well.
The Vikings finished their mandatory minicamp Thursday. Minnesota will host its final week of offseason workouts from June 15-18. Those practices will be voluntary.
Kevin O’Connell Won’t Name Starting QB Before Training Camp
GettyMinnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell told reporters Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy will continue to compete for the starting quarterback job to begin training camp.
On Wednesday, Pelissero might have given some Vikings fans hope the quarterback competition was ending soon. But O’Connell has been pretty clear that the team will begin training camp without a named starter behind center.
O’Connell told the media Tuesday he “has an idea” about when he will pick either Murray or McCarthy to start. But it won’t be during offseason workouts.
“We’ve got a great plan in place, and we want to make sure when we get to training camp we’ve got a great plan,” O’Connell said, per Lindsey Thiry of ESPN. “You don’t have a ton of time.”
The Vikings quarterback situation has been under the microscope all spring. But it’s under even more scrutiny since Murray pointed to the competition as a reason he could have struggled at minicamp this week.
“Having to split reps — me already being behind, not getting the amount of reps you would typically want a guy to get learning the offense — that’s probably the toughest part,” said Murray on June 9.
Murray made that comment after throwing back-to-back interceptions during 7-on-7 drills.
Unlike Murray, McCarthy isn’t learning a new offense. He has spent the past two years in O’Connell’s system and started 10 games last season.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported during the first week of June that McCarthy has featured better touch on his throws and superior accuracy this spring.
Vikings QB Competition Between Kyler Murray, J.J. McCarthy
On Thursday, O’Connell appeared to indirectly acknowledge the issue that splitting repetitions gives his two top quarterbacks — Murray and McCarthy. For that reason, O’Connell very likely won’t wait until late August to name a starter.
Whoever is the starter has to be ready for the Green Bay Packers on September 13.
But Murray and McCarthy doing what they can with the opportunities they get before O’Connell picks a starter is a necessary evil at the moment.
The same goes for fellow quarterbacks Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer. With the Vikings trying to get as many repetitions for Murray and McCarthy as possible, there aren’t a lot of remaining opportunities for Wentz and Brosmer.
The earlier O’Connell can name a starter in training camp or the preseason, the sooner all four Minnesota quarterbacks can settle into their roles. The rest of the offense can begin building chemistry with the named starter as well.
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