Vikings QB Room Draws Bad Review
The main priority this offseason in the Twin Cities was to upgrade the quarterback room after the abysmal play that overshadowed everything else in 2025. Kyler Murray joined the trio that remains from last year, which should count as an upgrade.
Murray is the presumed starter, though head coach Kevin O’Connell has been clear, repeatedly saying it’ll be a competition. J.J. McCarthy hopes to show improvement entering his third summer with the franchise. Carson Wentz was re-signed and is expected to be a depth option.
Max Brosmer continues to stick around as a developmental player. His career doesn’t have to be over because of a pair of poor outings in his rookie season. An undrafted rookie QB shouldn’t see the field in the first place.
Either way, those eight shoulders carry the hopes of Skol Nation. Unfortunately, not everyone is sold.
Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon listed the Vikings 6th among teams with the worst quarterback situations. He explained, “Why it’s Bad: In practically every way you can measure a quarterback, J.J. McCarthy was the least qualified passer in the NFL during his sophomore campaign. Now they’ve added Kyler Murray, who missed significant action in three of his last four seasons in Arizona and has a 90.3 passer rating since 2022.”
McCarthy’s 2025 season uncovered some serious concerns about his accuracy, decision-making, and mechanics. Though he scored a 6-4 record as a starter, the Vikings had one of the league’s worst passing attacks with him under center. In fairness, he did look better later in the season.
In addition to his performance, more worries arrived with the pile of injuries. After missing his entire rookie season due to a knee injury, he suffered a high ankle sprain early in the season, costing him five games. A concussion sidelined him for another contest and a hand injury forced him to sit out one game. That is in addition to leaving a couple of games early.
Showing neither adequate play nor availability, the Vikings had to act. That’s why two-time Pro Bowler Murray was signed. The Cardinals’ release allowed the Vikings to snag him for only $1.3 million.
As Gagnon mentioned, his play in recent years hasn’t been flawless either. That underwhelming recent history would still give the Vikings a baseline of QB play they haven’t had since Sam Darnold departed last offseason.
Murray was responsible for 26 touchdowns in 2024. That season also sticks out on his stat sheet because he appeared in all 17 games. Injuries have slowed him down. A torn ACL cost him the end of the 2022 season and the first half of the 2023 campaign and a foot injury limited him to only five games in 2025.
Gagnon offered a silver lining: “Silver Lining: As with Atlanta, you’re looking at two highly drafted guys in their 20s working with strong weapons and a stellar offensive line. And if it’s a crapshoot, at least they get two rolls of the dice. They’re also both cheap.”
Nobody can guarantee that the Vikings have satisfactory play under center in the upcoming season, but it’s feasible that Murray can at least be a starting-caliber passer under Kevin O’Connell with Justin Jefferson running routes. McCarthy’s improvement is also possible, perhaps even likely. The question is just to what extent he can work on his craft away from competitive live reps.
Gagnon’s final conclusion reveals more pessimism: “Outlook: The problem is that both have proven injury-prone. It’s really hard to imagine either becoming a consistently reliable option.”
Only time will tell whether O’Connell can revive his passing attack with either of the two signal-callers.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Sports Reference helped with this article.