A hamstring may end up deciding the Minnesota Vikings’ quarterback situation for Monday night, and not the noise around Kyler Murray’s play.
Murray left Sunday’s 19-15 loss to the Detroit Lions with a hamstring injury, according to head coach Kevin O’Connell after the Vikings’ first loss of the season. That has put his status for Monday night, Nov. 9, against the Buffalo Bills in question.
The timing matters because Murray’s season has already been under a microscope. Through six games, he has thrown for 1,022 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions, with an 86.6 passer rating. He has also been sacked 15 times.
O’Connell said Monday the team will put Murray’s hamstring through a full evaluation before deciding whether he can return to the field. When asked if Murray remains his starter as long as he’s healthy, O’Connell answered, “Yes.”
Even so, the early read on the injury has not sounded especially encouraging. On Tuesday, Ian Rapoport of ESPN/NFL Network said there is concern about Murray’s availability against Buffalo, though he doesn’t believe the injury is severe.
“So, the biggest thing is Kyler, like he does have hamstring soreness. I don’t get the sense it’s like really bad, but he is a mobile quarterback.
And so if he can’t move like he needs to, then I don’t know that he’s gonna play. And so then it would be Carson Wentz, which is interesting because when he’s played and been healthy in this offense, it’s looked pretty good.”
That mobility piece is the key. Murray’s legs are a major part of what he brings, and he has run for 167 yards on 29 carries this season. With 15 sacks already on the books, any limitation in his movement changes the equation fast.
The extra day before kickoff gives Minnesota a little more time to sort this out. Because the game is on Monday night, the Vikings won’t release their first injury report until Thursday instead of Wednesday.
If Murray can’t play, Carson Wentz would be next up. And that possibility has sparked a separate line of speculation: whether this hamstring issue could become a soft benching rather than a straight injury absence.
Mike Florio of PFT raised that possibility, and PFT Live also suggested Murray’s hamstring tightness could open the door for Wentz.
“I feel like a soft benching could be in the offing. When Kevin O’Connell says yesterday he’s got hamstring tightness. And there was something he was in the tent for, all of the game-winning drive by the Lions, had his left arm taped… I have a feeling this could be a way to say he’s injured and a way to pivot to Carson Wentz and see how it goes with Carson Wentz…”
Wentz, meanwhile, has apparently found his best chemistry with Justin Jefferson among Vikings quarterbacks since Kirk Cousins, according to that same PFT Live discussion.
Darren Wolfson of KSTP offered a similar read on Purple Daily: if Murray is healthy, he starts against Buffalo. If he can’t run Monday, the Vikings could treat it as a soft benching and turn to Wentz.
The quarterback chatter isn’t limited to the current roster, either. Wolfson said the Raiders “just aren’t willing to play ball” on Cousins, whom he believes would cost a second-round pick.
He also said there was “zero dialogue, zero interest” in Daniel Jones before Sunday’s game. Even so, he expects “some sort of action” before the trade deadline on Nov.
Outside the building, the patience level appears to be dropping. On the Access Vikings podcast, the Star Tribune crew said “the grace period with Kyler at the very least with the fan base does seem to have closed for many this weekend.”
For now, though, everything comes back to the hamstring. Thursday’s injury report should offer the clearest sign yet of who will be under center against the Bills.
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