The Minnesota Vikings achieved something akin to winning the lottery by inking Kyler Murray to a league-minimum deal this offseason, but that may have been less of a statement on the organization than it was an estimation of JJ McCarthy by his presumed successor.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reported on the Monday, May 18 edition of “NFL Live” that sources around the league believe Murray chose Minnesota because of the lack of respect he has for McCarthy’s potential as a QB1 at the NFL level.
“There are a lot of people who believe that Kyler Murray handpicked that situation in Minnesota,” Schefter said. “That he could win that starting QB job.”
Vikings Have Shown Lack of Faith in JJ McCarthy as QB1
GettyMinnesota Vikings quarterback JJ McCarthy.
The Vikings spent the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 draft on McCarthy, trading up from No. 11 and making him the fifth signal-caller taken in a QB-heavy class.
He missed his entire rookie season with injury, then went 6-4 in 2025 on 57.6 percent passing for 1,632 yards, 11 TDs and 12 INTs.
Former general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah punted on Sam Darnold, who led the team to a 14-3 record and a playoff berth the season prior, in favor of McCarthy. And after Darnold hoisted the Lombardi Trophy with the Seattle Seahawks last year, Vikings brass relieved Adofo-Mensah of his responsibilities.
The McCarthy pick and subsequent departures of both Darnold and Daniel Jones weren’t the only reasons that Adofo-Mensah lost his job after four seasons. But his failure to draft effectively across all rounds over multiple drafts was the most glaring flaw on his resumé, and McCarthy was the poster child for that failure.
Kyler Murray Creates Unique Challenges for Vikings Offense
GettyQuarterback Kyler Murray of the Minnesota Vikings.
Murray now enters the fold as something of a godsend given his track record as a two-time Pro Bowler in his late 20s who joined the Vikings on deal worth just $1.3 million. But Minnesota is a long way from clearing the proverbial woods, in which its QB decision-making has buried a franchise with elite skill-position talent.
Murray is an undersized quarterback who relies on his athleticism to create plus-offensive plays. Meanwhile, head coach Kevin O’Connell has had his greatest success with traditional pocket passers, earning playoff berths in Minnesota behind the work of Darnold and former starter Kirk Cousins.
When O’Connell was the offensive coordinator with the Los Angeles Rams, he built an offense that won the Super Bowl with another traditional big-armed, pocket-centric quarterback in Matthew Stafford.
Kevin O’Connell Faces Difficult Spot With Kyler Murray as QB1 Next Season
GettyMinnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell.
It isn’t fair to assume that O’Connell can’t win with a player like Murray, given that he’s never had the opportunity during his seven combined years as an NFL offensive coordinator and head coach.
But O’Connell is stuck somewhere between a proverbial rock and a hard place with Murray this upcoming season. If Murray gets hurt, which has been part of his football DNA over the past three years, that might somewhat bail out O’Connell. But should Murray play most of the regular season, the Vikings could end up damned if Murray does perform, and damned if he doesn’t, come 2027.
If Murray is bad, it will undermine O’Connell’s perceived genius as an offensive schemer and leave the Vikings in need of a new option under center. But if Murray is good, Minnesota may be forced to overpay for a player with a serious injury history who isn’t a prototypical fit for O’Connell’s offense.
The latter outcome will leave the Vikings with a choice: bring back Murray on an expensive contract and accept whatever his talent/injury ceiling might be, or allow a winning QB to leave in free agency (just like the team did with Darnold) and go back to square one with McCarthy entering the final year of his rookie contract.
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