Kyler Murray has officially been named the Vikings‘ starting quarterback. However, some question whether it was a rigged competition from the start since he didn’t exactly look the part before winning the job.
According to ESPN’s Kevin Seifert, Kyler Murray’s athleticism was on display throughout training camp. Unfortunately, the same can be said for his inconsistency.
“In the three practices leading up to O’Connell’s announcement, Murray struggled. To top it off, he threw two interceptions — and barely missed throwing a third — during the Vikings’ annual full-pads night stadium practice on Sunday. There were other days when his passes misfired, although usually it appeared less an accuracy issue than it was that he was still learning exactly where to place the ball.” Seifert wrote.
He later added, “The most charitable way to put it is that through two weeks of practice, Murray has shown that he has a long way to go before anyone should believe he is ready to have the kind of season that would revitalize his career.”
JJ McCarthy Lost The Job As Much As Kyler Murray Won It
There are two sides of the aisle when it comes to the JJ McCarthy conversation, and both of them have valid arguments. One side believes McCarthy was unfairly given a quick hook. That side sees him as a 23-year-old quarterback with ten starts under his belt. They think he should’ve been given a longer leash since the team invested the 10th overall pick in him two years ago.
Conversely, the other side of the aisle saw the writing on the wall as soon as Murray put pen to paper to come to Minnesota. Yes, his contract (one-year, $1.3 million) indicated that it would be a competition. They don’t need to bend over backwards to give him the starting job with that type of investment.
More importantly, McCarthy’s performance last season didn’t instill much confidence that it would be much of a competition. 10 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, 72.6 quarterback rating. He looked every bit like a 23-year-old quarterback with ten starts under his belt.
Even with Murray’s struggles in the desert, he still looked tangibly better with a lot less to work with. He tosses 6 touchdowns to only 3 interceptions (with an 88.6 QB rating) over his five starts. One side preached patience, while the other wants a chance to win now.
Unfortunately, when it comes down to it, NFL teams don’t have time to be patient. Every roster enters training camp with one common goal: Win the Super Bowl. They all think they can get there, and, with the quarterback position being monumentally important to a team’s success, they want to play the guy that gives the team the best chance to win.
To His Credit, He Bounced Back Strong Since Winning The Job
Maybe Murray just needed the young buck to stop breathing down his neck? The sample size has obviously been small (even for training camp standards), but he’s strung together two of his best days of practice since the start of camp after being named the starter. Will Ragatz of Bring Me The Sports highlighted Murray’s near-perfect day at Tuesday afternoon’s practice.
“Whether the news gave him a boost of confidence or not, Murray went out and had one of his best days of training camp so far. He looked the part of QB1 in a practice where he completed 15 of his 16 pass attempts.” Ragatz wrote.
He followed that up with another positive update after another impressive performance earlier today.
https://x.com/WillRagatz/status/2087650510945800226?s=20
The veteran has all the pieces in place to have a career (or at least a one-year) renaissance in Minnesota. Now it’ll be up to him to show that he can make the most of the advantageous situation.
The Vikings Found Their Starting QB, But The Battle Wasn’t Totally Performance Based