Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell took to the podium for the first time in weeks on Tuesday, and addressed the question on everyone’s mind.
The Vikings are in the midst of a heated quarterback battle between Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy, and O’Connell laid out what the plan is for determining their winner.
“Both Kyler and JJ will take reps with the first team,” said O’Connell. “They will also take reps with the second group, and I think that gives different layers to the evaluation. We want an elevator at the quarterback position. In many ways doing that in this system is kinda a do your job mentality.”
Training camp will give media and fans the first real look at how the reps are being divided between Murray and McCarthy, and if it truly will be a 50/50 split.
Kevin O’Connell Won’t Reveal His End Date for the QB Battle
After a disappointing 2025 season, the Vikings added Murray to bring some competition to the quarterback room. And while he remains the favorite for the job, McCarthy is clearly being given his fair shot at the job.
“We want to be thorough,” continued O’Connell. “But at the same time I think it’s important when we’re ready to move forward it’ll be good to do that so we can prepare that player for the season. Whenever that happens it’s not the end all, we need to continuously chase improvement.”
Every rep that Murray and McCarthy split is one taken away from the eventual starter in their quest to be ready for Week 1. The Vikings have an end date in mind, but the play from their quarterbacks could speed up that timeline if a clear winner emerges.
“There’s an ideal date,” said O’Connell about ending the competition. “There’s a date in mind subject to what we think is best. If we think we can make the decision before that date, we will.”
While some reports have indicated the battle could continue all the way up to the start of the regular season, Minnesota would obviously benefit the most as a team by identifying the starter as soon as possible.
Vikings Sign Right Tackle Brian O’Neill to Huge Extension
Meanwhile, the Vikings finally locked up their star right tackle Brian O’Neill to a monster four-year, $96 million extension.
O’Neill had been waiting for a new deal all summer, and just before camp, the Vikings got it done.
“We’re really really pleased that we’re able to keep him here for a long time,” said Vikings general manager Nolan Teasley after the deal was announced. He also went out of his way to mention the job that interim GM Rob Brzezinski did with getting the deal done.
After a year in which the offensive line was decimated by injury, the Vikings are now hoping to get some consistency from the group. With Christian Darrisaw also healthy, Minnesota now has two of the best tackles in the NFL locked up for the foreseeable future as they head into a crucial 2026 season.
Kevin O’Connell Spills the Beans on How the Vikings QB Battle Will Be Handled