A recent report teased that Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell could name either free-agency signing Kyler Murray or 2024 first-round draft pick J.J. McCarthy the team’s 2026 Week 1 starting quarterback as soon as by the end of this week.
It appears that won’t be the case.
Kevin O’Connell decides to stick with Kyler Murray, J.J. McCarthy plan
Per Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk, O’Connell confirmed while speaking with reporters on Thursday that he will not be naming a QB1 before training-camp practices get underway in late July.
“We have a plan in place to make sure that the decision we make is going to be about what’s best for the Minnesota Vikings,” O’Connell said. “The timeline of that does involve making sure we get our starter ready to go.”
O’Connell insisted that Murray and McCarthy both “had really good days” at this week’s mandatory minicamp and that there are “still plenty of opportunities to learn” before Minnesota begins its preseason with a matchup at the New York Giants on Aug. 15. Presumably, the competition for the starting job won’t end before both signal-callers take snaps against the Giants at MetLife Stadium.
Murray reportedly outperformed McCarthy throughout portions of springtime workouts covered by media members. That said, it never made all that much sense for O’Connell to make any kind of decision before training camp, as he allegedly is not yet “ready to give up on” McCarthy.
When could Kevin O’Connell hand the starting job to either Kyler Murray or J.J. McCarthy?
“To give an actual date would be not necessarily accurate from a portrayal of how we see it,” O’Connell added about the situation. “But there is a timeline to make sure that we can allow the competition to continue and advance, and really lay out a training camp that will allow us to do that, but also make a timely decision.”
History shows that timely decision may come after the Vikings play their second contest of the preseason, a home game against the Baltimore Ravens on Aug. 22. Minnesota ends the preseason with a game at the Denver Broncos on Aug. 28.
