The Minnesota Vikings are heading into the season with a quarterback setup that invites hope, skepticism, and a whole lot of debate. On paper, the team wants to believe Kyler Murray and J.J.
McCarthy give them two options with real upside. Outside the building, not everyone is buying that picture.
Murray arrives with the kind of reputation that can spark optimism. His time with the Arizona Cardinals gave people enough flashes to wonder whether Minnesota might be the place where he settles in as the veteran presence this team needs. But there’s another version of this story too: Murray could be merely average, lost in a league full of quarterbacks who are simply better.
McCarthy brings his own questions. He’s entering his third NFL season, but the résumé is still thin.
He missed his rookie year and didn’t get through a full season in his second year, either. That reality alone says plenty about where the Vikings’ confidence stands.
Minnesota would not have signed Murray if it felt completely secure about McCarthy.
That uncertainty is exactly why Frank Schwab’s Yahoo Sports projection lands so harshly for the Vikings. In his “crystal ball” look at Murray and McCarthy, the outlook is bleak.
Schwab writes that the "optimism about Kyler Murray is rooted more in blind faith and trust in Kevin O'Connell's coaching than anything tangible on Murray's NFL résumé." He also notes, "There is a chance that a team that won nine games with awful quarterback play last season gets to double-digit wins with below-average quarterback play," before adding, "Perhaps Murray finally does have his breakout with a better franchise and a good coach, and then the Vikings really bounce back to their 2024 level. But the roster around the quarterback isn't better than last season, and the Vikings are the most reasonable pick to finish last in the NFC North."
So while the Vikings may be hoping for a bounce, Schwab sees them ending up at the bottom of the division. Even then, he still calls them the "best of all the NFL's last-place teams."
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Vikings Fans Already Have A Caleb Banks Fear They Know Too Well
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Still, there is already a familiar edge of unease around the pick, because Banks has not yet gotten onto the practice field and the Vikings know how quickly a premium defensive line investment can turn into a waiting game. If he is healthy, he has the talent to push for a starting job from day one, but the early months of camp will tell a lot about whether Minnesota is getting the disruptive interior presence it expected or another reminder that upside comes with risk. [Read more 🡒]
Vikings 2026 Outlook Hinges On One Tense Kyler Murray J.J. McCarthy Call
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McCarthys first season was slowed by injuries and uneven play, which is why the competition matters so much for 2026. The range of outcomes for this roster is wide, and if the quarterback situation settles quickly the Vikings can talk themselves into a real rebound, but if it drags on, the offense may spend another year searching for its identity. [Read more 🡒]
Dallas Turner Suddenly Carries Huge Pressure For The Vikings Defense
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Brian Flores has never hidden what he wants from this unit, and Turner fits the mold better now than he did a year ago. The bigger question is whether the Vikings are ready to ask even more of him in 2026, with the edge-rush picture changing around him and the pressure to turn last seasons breakout into something more permanent. [Read more 🡒]