Kyler Murray will have an opportunity for a fresh start after winning the Minnesota Vikings‘ QB competition over J.J. McCarthy. This past offseason, the Arizona Cardinals decided to cut ties with him, so Murray has plenty of motivation to succeed in Minnesota.
During his time with the Cardinals, Murray recorded a passer rating of 92.2 with 20,460 yards, 121 touchdowns and 60 interceptions in 87 games, per StatMuse. As a result, head coach Kevin O’Connell will look to tap into any remaining potential in the former No. 1 pick.
With the decision now made, CBS Sports’ Emory Hunt shared an outlook on the Vikings with the team having Murray as QB1.
“The expectations are to get to the postseason and win a postseason game because that’s why you go out and get Kyler Murray,” Hunt said in an Aug. 11 appearance on “CBS Sports HQ.” “If you didn’t want to enhance your chances of getting deep into the postseason and making perhaps a Super Bowl run, you would have stayed with J.J. McCarthy and rode the wave of improvement from week to week.
“But you go and get Kyler Murray because you felt like you have a high-floor defense and a high-floor offense from a personnel perspective. So why not go get a quarterback that can help enhance that and move this thing forward? 11-6 is the floor for the Vikings. Anything they build on top of that is just gravy.”
Vikings Don’t Need Kyler Murray to Be MVP Caliber
Meanwhile, ESPN’s Field Yates noted that they don’t need Murray to put on a Superman cape for them. For Minnesota, Yates sees the team needing only above-average play to be in the conversation for a playoff berth.
“He surveyed the landscape of places where he could go to, A, become a starting quarterback, and B, have a chance to compete,“ Yates said during an Aug. 11 appearance on SportsCenter. “And while it wasn’t good enough last season, the Vikings did finish 9-8 last year, largely on the back of strong defensive performances and good special teams.
“And I think if you’re Minnesota, you’re saying, we don’t need Kyler Murray to be what he once was, which was at times an MVP candidate, at least for a stretch in Arizona for a season. They just need him to be an above-average starter, and this team can legitimately compete in the NFC North.”
Kyler Murray Predicted to Have Career Year in Minnesota
Recently, FS1’s Colin Cowherd is another media member to back Murray to have success in Minnesota. Furthermore, Cowherd believes that the former Cardinals star will experience a career year under O’Connell.
“I think Kyler Murray is going to go to Minnesota and he’s going to flourish—more stability, more money, better teammates,“ Cowherd said during a segment on the Aug. 3 edition of “The Herd.“ “I don’t think he’s going to be as good as Sam Darnold in Minnesota, but here’s my prediction for the numbers that Kyler Murray will get in his first year with Minnesota.
“His career passer rating is 92. I think he’s going to go to 99. Completion percentage increases from 67 to 68. His 2-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio goes to 3-to-1.”
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