The Minnesota Vikings have ended their quarterback competition, naming Kyler Murray the starter over J.J. McCarthy. Murray will lead the first-team offense as the Vikings prepare for their preseason opener against the New York Giants on Aug. 15.
With the decision made, Minnesota will now go as Murray goes as the former No. 1 pick looks to take advantage of this fresh start with the Vikings. Moreover, former NFL QB Kurt Warner isn’t surprised the team chose the veteran over McCarthy.
“I can’t say that I’m surprised by the decision,” Warner said during an Aug. 11 appearance on the NFL Network. “I think with a lot of these competitions, it just seems natural to go with the veteran guy because it’s always easier to move to the young guy if things don’t work out.”
Nonetheless, Warner is also excited to see what the former Arizona Cardinals star can do in head coach Kevin O’Connell’s offense. Murray brings several tools to the table that make him an intriguing QB for Minnesota.
“I think there’s just the intrigue of Kyler Murray, and we’ve seen so many great moments,” Warner added. “He’s a gifted, gifted thrower. He’s a gifted athlete. Hasn’t quite put it all together quite yet. But at this stage with the guys around him, Coach O’Connell has done a great job with bringing quarterbacks along and helping take them to the next level.
“I think that’s what intrigues everybody, is that he hasn’t had a quarterback quite like Kyler Murray before. And so I’m excited to see what he can do in this offense with those weapons.”
Kurt Warner Gets Blunt on J.J. McCarthy’s Future
While there are conversations about McCarthy and his future in Minnesota, Warner doesn’t believe the Vikings need to ship him off. He believes that this situation now allows for the team to bring McCarthy along in what is essentially his second season, given that he missed his entire rookie season due to injury.
“We’ve got a veteran guy, we can start that guy, and we can let J.J. continue to grow,” Warner said. “So instead of forcing him to have to play before he’s ready, now maybe we can wait until we think he’s ready and putting his best foot forward.
“Then we can place him back in there, whether that’s a year from now if Kyler doesn’t re-sign, whether that’s a couple years if Kyler does sign a longer-term deal if he has success this year.
“But I just think it’s too early. I’ve seen too many guys that get thrown in early, then they get discarded, and they never get a chance to truly learn the position so we can see what they can be as a quarterback.”
Vikings QB Kyler Murray Receives Worrying Analysis
Although Murray has several tools in his arsenal that Warner is excited to see, there are concerns. During an Aug. 10 appearance on KFAN, former Vikings linebacker Ben Leber shared his thoughts on what he saw from Murray during the night practice on Aug. 9 that might have him worried.
“Kyler made a couple plays,” Leber said. “He had a great touchdown strike to [Jordan] Addison in one of the team periods, but that wasn’t even a progression read. It was like, okay, Addison’s on the backside of this formation. He ran a skinny little slant post [and] he was clearly the number one read.
“He threw it in there, touchdown. And then he scrambled for a rushing touchdown later on. That was about it. Everything else seemed clunky for Kyler. It just doesn’t seem like a smooth operation for him yet. If it’s an immediate read, yes, he can make the throw. If he’s going to run through a progression, especially against this defense right now, it just seems very hesitant and very reactionary as a thrower right now, which is not a great situation.”
It will be interesting to see if Murray, now getting all the first-team reps, will calm any concerns Leber might have after seeing what the new Vikings starter displayed during practice on Aug. 9.
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