The Minnesota Vikings recently signed Kyler Murray to a veteran minimum $1.3 million deal, and they did it for a reason. That reason was to make him compete with JJ McCarthy, who has struggled to find his footing so far in his NFL career. It’s an interesting situation for both QBs, and Hall of Famer Rod Woodson has some thoughts on it.
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Murray is entering the eighth year of his career. Meanwhile, McCarthy is entering just his third season, though it feels more like his second because he missed his rookie year due to injury. From training camp to the pre-season games, these two QBs are expected to compete with each other for the starting job.
Woodson feels that McCarthy is going to have a tough time beating out Murray. In fact, the former cornerback sees Murray possibly reviving his career in Minnesota, just as Sam Darnold did with the Vikings and Daniel Jones did with the Colts.
“I don’t think he’ll beat [Murray] out, no,” Woodson said of JJ McCarthy on the Rich Eisen Show. “I mean, you have a veteran quarterback who’s trying to find the second side of his career in a new place, and hopefully he learns what he can and cannot do. Like the other quarterbacks we’ve seen, Daniel Jones, [Sam] Darnold.”
The former Super Bowl champion added that Murray came into the league showing immense talent at the QB position. However, in the NFL, talent alone doesn’t separate players since everyone at this level is gifted.
Woodson believes the real difference comes from players who keep learning and understanding the game at a higher level, which is why he’s interested in seeing Murray approach this stage of his career with a mindset focused on growth and progression.
“He is talented. But talent doesn’t mean a lot in the National Football League cause everybody is talented. It’s the guys who keep learning, who keep progressing, who keep understanding the game at a high level. Those guys separate themselves from guys who play five to seven years and the Hall of Famers,” Woodson said, before concluding,
“But I don’t think JJ will beat him out just for the fact that Murray is an older guy. He’s been around. He understands systems. And the biggest thing is that he has some players over these to help him out. You know, [Justin] Jefferson, one of the best receivers in the National Football League, and I know Jefferson wants more oppurtunity to catch the football.”
Murray can certainly supplant McCarthy as the starter in Minnesota. As recently as last season, he showed flashes of the No. 1 overall talent he came into the league with. It’s just a matter of establishing consistency and, above all else, staying healthy.
In his last four seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, Murray missed 27 games due to various injuries. Most notably, he tore his ACL in 2022, which bled into the 2023 season. This past season, he missed 12 games due to a foot injury.
At the end of the day, if Murray can stay healthy, he should have no issues taking McCarthy’s job. Unless the third-year QB enters the season showing major improvements, it shouldn’t be too hard for the veteran to earn the trust of the coaching staff. He just needs to stay focused on football and cut back on the video games.
