The quarterback battle at Vikings is also the one to watch for the 2026 NFL season as both their starting quarterback from last year, J.J. McCarthy, and veteran player Kyler Murray fight for the role.
While McCarthy did show off his skills in some of the games last year, he has been struggling to stay fit as he missed his rookie year as well as a total number of 7 games in 2025: 5 due to his ankle injury, 1 because of a hairline fracture, and another for a concussion.
McCarthy was asked about how his relationship has been with Murray so far on Thursday, to which he dropped a cryptic comment saying it’s like two guys in a classroom who sit on separate sides of the classroom, highlighting that it’s the coach’s responsibility to teach and coach them.
McCarthy doubled down on his answer when the interviewer asked him if there is any awkwardness between the two.
“He’s already trying to cope with being a 3rd string qb.” One fan reacted.
“Meaning it’s awkward asf 🤣
They both want what they feel is theirs and Kyler prob has that I’ve been a starter and JJ is like im thier first rd guy.” Another fan wrote.
“Hella awkward answer
JJ clearly hasn’t ever been PR trained between “Nine” and answers like this.” another fan commented.
“Made it awkward by trying to dance around the fact that they are competing for a starting job. Just say there’s a competitive spirit but ultimately whatever is best for the team is all that matters. So many of these athletes are just dumb lmao.” another fan said.
”That’s what Russell wilson needs to be doing with retirement. Teaching QBs how to answer questions without really saying anything.” another fan shared their thoughts.
“Well he just made it awkward. Lol.” Another fan added.
Analyst Advises the Vikings to Not Trade J.J. McCarthy
On May 13th, ESPN analyst Dan Graziano shared his thoughts on whether the Vikings should trade McCarthy after the franchise picked him as the No.10th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Graziano shared that he believes trading McCarthy doesn’t make a lot of sense as the Vikings have already paid the 70% of his rookie contract.
The analyst argued that there is no way the Vikings could get anything in return that compares to what they spent in draft capital for McCarthy.
“They’re less than a year removed from believing he could be their starter, not just now but for years to come. And it’s not like Murray is some automatic fix, either.”
Graziano highlighted that Murray has had just one fully healthy season in the past 5 years.
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