The Minnesota Vikings‘ quarterback competition is underway and while many see Kyler Murray as the favorite to win, J.J. McCarthy does have one major advantage: He knows the offense.
It’s Year 3 for McCarthy in the Vikings’ offense under head coach Kevin O’Connell, while Murray is only a handful of months into it. As a result, if McCarthy wants to get a leg up on the competition, this would be is way to winning the starting job.
Still, Murray won’t let this be McCarthy’s advantage in the battle. While speaking to the media on July 29, the former Arizona Cardinals star shared an update on where he’s at learning O’Connell’s offense.
“Any chance I could get to going over scripts, going over the playbook every day for the last six weeks and then obviously, workouts and stuff, going out there and implementing what we’ve done and just trying to familiarize, get more familiar with the verbiage and the footwork and all that stuff,” Murray told reporters.
“… I feel great. Really helped me going through OTAs for sure. You know, having done it once now, obviously this time it’s about to be real. But I truly believe that going through OTAs has prepared me for what’s to come.”
Kyler Murray on Major Challenge of Learning New Offense
Moreover, Murray noted the challenge he’s had in learning O’Connell’s offensive system as he looks to become comfortable with it enough that it’s not an advantage for McCarthy in this battle.
“I think it’s a reps thing,” Murray added. “Continue to do it over and over again. Say it over and over again. The more you do it, the more it comes naturally, the more it becomes easier. I think that’s really the process for me. Once all that settles down for me, it’s just playing football.”
Should Murray win the starting job, O’Connell will be looking to get the most out of the former No. 1 pick. During his time with the Cardinals, Murray recorded a passer rating of 92.2 with 20,460 yards, 121 touchdowns and 60 interceptions in 87 games, per StatMuse.
Adam Thielen on Vikings’ QB Battle Amid Training Camp
Amid the competition starting with training camp and the preseason, former Vikings wideout Adam Thielen shared his thoughts on the competition during a July 27 appearance on “NFL Live.”
“I think it’s Kyler Murray’s job right now,” Thielen said. “But if J.J. McCarthy comes in and shows what he wasn’t doing well last year, he could win that job. First of all, when you see J.J. in person and you’re around him, you want to be around him.
“He’s a great leader [and] fun to be around. He’s just a guy that everyone loves. At the end of the day, they drafted him in the first round, and they want him to have success. So if he comes in and shows it, he could win that job. But right now, it’s Kyler’s job.”
It will be interesting to see if Murray does pick up the Vikings’ offense enough to close the gap between him and McCarthy in this aspect and win the competition.
Kyler Murray Drops Major Vikings Offense Update Amid QB Battle