The Vikings’ quarterback battle may not just decide a starter. It could decide whether Kyler Murray is still on the roster at all.
Minnesota is expected to carry its competition into training camp, with the hope that a starter gets named sooner rather than later. The goal is simple: get either Murray or J.J.
McCarthy all the reps with the first-team offense as quickly as possible. The assumption around the team is that Murray will win the job, and there’s little reason to keep up the pretense any longer than Kevin O’Connell feels is “necessary.”
That decision might not come until joint practices with the Baltimore Ravens, before the preseason game between the two teams on August 22.
On a recent episode of “The Real Forno Show,” Tyler Forness of AtoZ Sports laid out one possible outcome that goes beyond the usual starter-versus-backup conversation. He sees a depth chart that could leave one of the two quarterbacks out entirely.
"You're going to have Carson Wentz as your QB2, and I think you're going to have Max Brosmer as your QB3. And my theory, right now, is that either Kyler Murray or J.J.
McCarthy will be off the roster. And if he's not, I think that guy will be QB3."
Forness then explained why that setup would matter so much on game day.
"The process of making that guy QB3 is simple. You don't have the immediate pressure of that guy breathing down your neck."
In that scenario, Wentz would serve as the “game-day backup,” while Murray and McCarthy would be arranged around him on the depth chart depending on who wins the job. That would mean the loser of the competition would not even be the immediate backup on Sundays.
For a quarterback trying to stay in the fight, that’s not a comfortable place to land. McCarthy has already made it clear he does not want to be traded, but Forness’ version of events would put real pressure on the loser of the battle.
And for Murray, that pressure could be even sharper.
"My theory is this. If Kyler does not get the starting job, I think he’ll request a trade."
Murray’s arrival in Minnesota likely came with the understanding that he would be the starter. If he can’t beat out McCarthy, it would raise a major question about where his career goes next. At the same time, he would still be a quarterback with value in a league that is always short on proven passers.
That possibility is now part of the conversation around Minnesota’s quarterback competition, and Forness put it plainly enough to bring it out into the open.
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