After two years of frustrations with J.J McCarthy, which at one point included the Minnesota Vikings releasing a would be Super Bowl champion in Sam Darnold, the franchise has officially found its alternative to the Michigan product, and at a bargain bin price as well. On Thursday afternoon, it was announced that the Vikings had signed the freshly released Arizona Cardinal, Kyler Murray, to a one-year, veteran minimum contract.
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Even though Murray’s contract is only worth a grand total of $1.3 million, the general consensus is that the two-time Pro Bowler will be the Vikings’ starter heading into Week 1 of the 2026 regular season. According to Nick Wright, however, that assertion is nothing more than conjecture at best.
“People are trying to convince themselves that Kyler on the Vikings would be dangerous,” the Fox Sports’ host noted during his latest broadcast. “No, it wouldn’t. Would it be an upgrade over J.J. McCarthy? Sure. Would they be dangerous? No.”
Going as far as to label Murray as “the 20th best quarterback in football,” Wright argued that, while Murray is ultimately worthy of being a starter in the NFL, he isn’t inherently capable of providing the Vikings with any “contending possibilities” either. So while he may be able to add to the current product, that doesn’t mean that Minnesota will see much better than the 9-8 record that they saw last year.
In highlighting the fact that “Kyler has started more games in this league than Joe Burrow,” Wright also seemed to suggest that the experience won’t do him much good. In Murray’s defense, however, the Vikings are seemingly looking for any sense of veteran leadership that they can find right now, and with a full seven years under his belt, the former Cardinal should at least be able to provide them with that.
For as much as the phrase has become played out in recent years, Murray will forever be a former first overall draft pick. Pair that with an Offensive Rookie of the Year award, a 100.6 passer rating for the 2021 season, and one of the cheapest contracts in all of football, and there’s certainly enough bits of copium here to make this one-year trial run a justifiable one for the Vikings.
It seems as if the franchise is more focused on finding a placement for McCarthy rather than its commitment to Murray, and at this point in his career, the 28-year-old QB is likely fine with that. This gives him an opportunity to earn a much more substantial contract through the open market in 2027, and it also provides the Vikings with a bridge that leads them away from McCarthy. So even if it’s not ideal in terms of Super Bowl odds, everyone’s needs are still being met, making it a rather hard deal to argue against.
