Minnesota Vikings quarterback Carson Wentz played well against the Green Bay Packers, all things considered, but his time in the starting role this season is probably going to end up as abbreviated as it was last year, if not more so, when he started five games in place of an injured JJ McCarthy.
Wentz stepped in during the first quarter after Kyler Murray suffered a concussion. The Vikings have some hope that Murray might return for next week’s contest against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field, but even if he doesn’t, Murray is likely to be ready to go again in Week 3 versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Some NFL analysts have speculated that Wentz might overtake Murray for the starting role if the latter misses next Sunday’s outing and Wentz leads the Vikings to a road victory over the Bears, just as McCarthy did in Week 1 last season. However, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network threw cold water on that notion during an appearance on the “Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday, September 15.
“I think with Kyler … everyone was looking forward to seeing the different dimensions this offense can have with a really dynamic quarterback who could move to throw,” Rapoport said. “I’d be surprised if [Wentz] was their starting quarterback. Kyler is gonna come back, and I would expect it to be him.”
Kyler Murray in Vikings’ Facilities Monday, Tuesday After Concussion
Based on historic recovery times from concussions, Murray has about a one-in-three chance of returning to the field against the Bears in Chicago.
He remains in the league’s mandatory concussion protocol, though he has also been in the building each of the past two days ahead of the Vikings’ first official practice work of the week, which happens on Wednesday.
“Kevin O’Connell, the Vikings head coach, saying that Murray came into work on Monday feeling better. But it’s the protocol, you can’t really predict it, so we gotta see how this goes,” Mike Garafolo of NFL Network said Tuesday. “If not, Carson Wentz once again. Wentz played extremely well. How about the Carson Wentz career arc? Let’s see if he winds up being the guy. We’ll keep that updated throughout the week.”
The most likely outcome is that Murray misses one game and is ready to return in Week 3 against the Buccaneers, while the worst-case scenario is that he misses multiple contests.
No Pathway Has Opened for JJ McCarthy to Get Back Into Starting QB Role for Vikings
The one thing no one is talking about is the possibility that McCarthy steps into the starting role in Week 2, or that he challenges Murray for the top role once Murray returns to action — whenever that may be.
McCarthy was the No. 10 pick in 2024 and started 10 games last year. However, he lost the starting job to Murray before the first preseason game and slowly dropped off, falling to QB3 behind Wentz heading into the year.
If Murray does not clear protocol by the weekend, McCarthy will start the game as the backup quarterback, while Max Brosmer will serve as the team’s emergency QB.
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