The Minnesota Vikings, and their quarterback situation with Kyler Murray’s concussion have been a storyline throughout the course of this week. There have been several updates throughout the week by various analysts and media. Now, The Ringer’s Tom Pelissero offered his take on whether or not the quarterback will play against the Chicago Bears.
Murray has slowly been advancing throughout the course of the week. He has gone from watching film to participating in practice, and is going through concussion protocol.
Now, Pelissero offered his take on whether or not the quarterback will play, with the Bears game just a couple of days away. The analyst also offered some intriguing nuggets about the quarterback’s practice participation
“I’m interested to see, and I can’t tell you with 100% certainty right now that Kyler’s not going to play on Sunday against the Bears. He has been moving through the concussion protocol. He felt good basically right after, like 15 minutes later didn’t have a headache or anything. And so concussions are, there’s no two that are alike. And so, let’s see. Now I don’t, again I don’t think for a variety of reasons that Kyler’s going to play this week, can’t rule it out.”
Vikings Quarterback Has Lengthy Injury History
The Vikings quarterback has a lengthy injury history that dates back to his time with the Arizona Cardinals.
Just last season, he dealt with a right foot sprain that caused him to miss 12 games. He was injured in week five against the Tennessee Titans and was placed on injured reserve. The quarterback had been healthy for a few seasons before that, but suffered a torn right ACL in 2022. This caused him to miss the end of the 2022 season and the first nine games of the 2023 season. The injury itself was a non-contact tear.
Other minor injuries included a right ankle sprain in 2021 and a right hamstring strain in 2022. The ankle sprain caused him to miss three games, while the hamstring strain caused him to miss two games. He suffered hamstring strains and joint sprains in 2019 and 2020. However, he did not miss any time for those.
Vikings Have Solid Backup Plan If Murray Cannot Go
The Vikings have a solid backup plan in case Murray is not able to go. They went with the veteran Carson Wentz in Sunday’s win over the Green Bay Packers, and he played well. All told, the quarterback went 12-of-19 on the afternoon, throwing for 133 yards and three touchdowns. He looked like vintage Wentz, as he was able to lead the Vikings down the field on some crucial drives. This included in the fourth quarter, when he was able to complete some key passes.
Obviously, the Vikings, and their fans, would want Murray to play. It sounds like things are going in the right direction in that regard. The team is in a positive situation either way here, as they now have backup quarterback play that they can rely on. This is certainly a luxury that many NFL teams would like to have.
Sunday’s showdown with the Bears is an important game, both in terms of momentum and from the rivalry aspect of it. It sounds like the Vikings are trying to do everything they can to make sure Murray is ready to go. If anything, it sounds like they are taking the cautious approach to things, which is not a bad way to go when sealing with your franchise quarterback. This just adds another storyline for Sunday.
Vikings Get Surprise Kyler Murray Update as Sunday Nears