On Sept. 18, the Minnesota Vikings decided to rule out Kyler Murray for their Week 2 game against the Chicago Bears. As a result, Wentz would have to replicate his performance against the Green Bay Packers to get the Vikings to 2-0 should he get the start.
Wentz came off the bench and went 13-for-19 on his pass attempts for 133 passing yards and three touchdowns for a passer rating of 123.5 against the Packers.
After the decision to rule out Murray, Wentz spoke to the media and shared his thoughts on his mindset over the last few days, when the Vikings needed him to come in cold off the bench against Green Bay and now needed him to start against Chicago.
“Got to be ready,” Wentz told reporters on Sept. 18. “Got to be locked in. And the way you can be adaptable and stay ready is by mentally locking in. I think for me, the years I’ve been a backup, that was the first time I’ve really been thrust into a game like that. So that was a whole new experience. I think I talked about that a little bit after the game. So that was new to me.
“But again, I fell back on my preparation. I wasn’t maybe taking the reps during the week, but I go through everything as if I’m the starter. Guys have the same kind of mentality, the same approach, and the same kind of regimen as far as preparation, watching film, studying our game plan, all those things, and that paid off last week.”
Carson Wentz on Facing Bears’ Defense in Week 2
Moreover, now that Wentz knows that he’s starting, the veteran QB shared his thoughts on the Bears’ secondary. The Vikings signal-caller connected with Justin Jefferson against the Packers, who recorded eight receptions for 92 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
“They’re a good team,” Wentz added. “Obviously, they put up a lot of points offensively last week. They do a lot of good things defensively as well. They don’t do a ton of crazy stuff. That’s one thing. This D coordinator has been around for a long time. A lot of respect for him. Gone against him before. They have good players. I think we have good players, too.
“I’m excited to see the line of scrimmage kind of be where I think it’s won and lost more than anything. And so, excited to see that mentality from our guys up front to kind of get after these guys and kind of open up some things down the field.”
Adam Thielen Sees Vikings Staying With Kyler Murray as Starter
If Wentz performs well and gets Minnesota to 2-0, there might be calls for the veteran to be the starter. However, former Vikings wideout Adam Thielen believes that Murray will be the starter once he’s ready to go.
“I think they made that decision in training camp,” Thielen said in a Sept. 17 appearance on 104.3 The Score in Chicago. “They chose Kyler Murray to be their starter, and there are multiple reasons for that. And I’m not in those meetings every day or at every practice, but from my perspective, I think it gives you a wider playbook.
“A guy who can still play on time and do all the things they want to do, but when the reads aren’t there, instead of taking a sack or throwing the ball away, he can just go move a little bit and sometimes it’s not a first down.”
Carson Wentz Gets Candid on Vikings Start After Kyler Murray Ruled Out