The Minnesota Vikings are having a QB battle between J.J. McCarthy and Kyler Murray. Nonetheless, many expect Murray to emerge as the winner in the competition. Moreover, being the Vikings’ starter would allow the former No. 1 pick to show he’s still a starting QB in the NFL.
During his time with the Arizona Cardinals, Murray posted a 92.2 passer rating with 20,460 yards, 121 touchdowns, and 60 interceptions in 87 games, per StatMuse.
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell appears to get the most out of his QBs. Still, former NFL signal-caller Ryan Fitzpatrick is warning Minnesota not to commit long-term to Murray even if the player experiences success this upcoming season.
“I do think it’ll be a one-year great experiment,” Fitzpatrick said on the July 1 edition of “The Rich Eisen Show.” “It’s going to work well and then potentially trail off after that, but I’m excited to see how it goes this season… I’m not saying they won’t keep him for more than a year.
“I think his best year with Minnesota will be his first year, and if they keep him after that, it’s going to trail off because some of the issues that came up in Arizona are going to be the same issues that follow him.”
Vikings Should Avoid Keeping Kyler Murray Long-Term
Moreover, Fitzpatrick went into detail regarding what he believes are the issues that will emerge should the Vikings decide to keep Murray long-term.
“He’s supremely talented,” Fitzpatrick added. “Everybody knows that the first year in the offense, everything is going to be fresh, new, and fun, and they’re going to go out there and play really well.
“Then, in that next year, as things get stale and you really have to focus on and hone somebody’s leadership skills, I think that’s when you’ll see it trail off. But again, this year, I’m really looking forward to it. I think it’s going to be a great show.”
Minnesota has gone down this route with having Sam Darnold for one season and letting him walk rather than doing everything to re-sign him. Still, it seems that even if it works out for Murray with the Vikings, Fitzpatrick isn’t buying that it’s sustainable in the long term.
Ryan FitzPatrick Further Expresses Kyler Murray Warning
The NFL analyst went into more detail about why he isn’t a believer that Murray will have long-term success in Minnesota.
“I don’t know that it’s a maturity issue,” Fitzpatrick said. “I just think, with Kyler Murray, what are his strengths? All the things that you can measure, those are the things that he’s always been unbelievable at.
“I think it’s just been some of the intangibles where he has struggled, fitting into a locker room and being able to elevate a team to the next level. So I just think in Year 1, you’re not going to have to worry about those things because they’ll take care of themselves.
“It’s easy in Year 1 because everything is new. As you go on in the same spot for multiple years, those things become much more important. That’s what I’m saying as to why I think this year is going to be great, but it’s going to be a one-year experiment that starts out great and tails off from there.”
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