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Kyle Murray learns fate after ambitious bid to reclaim starting QB job from young star Kyler Murray has been named the starting quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings after seemingly beating out J.J. McCarthy, who must now wait for his opportunity to get his career back on track Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell has named Kyler Murray as the team’s starting quarterback after the veteran beat out J.J. McCarthy. The Vikings endured a difficult season in 2025. After Sam Darnold joined the Seattle Seahawks, where he won the Super Bowl, McCarthy has played in just 10 NFL games since being selected in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft and missing his entire rookie season due to injury. McCarthy suffered three separate injuries last season, causing him to miss seven games, and leaving the Vikings exploring other quarterback options. Murray landed in Minnesota, and the veteran has usurped McCarthy on the first official depth chart. On Tuesday, the Vikings officially named Murray as the team’s starting quarterback. The former No. 1 overall pick had been the heavy favorite to win the job since he arrived in the building following his release by the Arizona Cardinals. Arizona made the move to avoid a $16.5 million payment that would have triggered on March 15. However, the franchise will still absorb a nearly $55 million cap hit for the quarterback and pay him $35.5 million this season. Following Murray’s arrival, O’Connell confirmed there would be an open competition between the 29-year-old and McCarthy. In the end, Murray had "shown enough" command of the offense to earn the starting role. Sign up to our NFL newsletter here “In my opinion, he's got the skill set and the abilities not only just from the standpoint of accuracy and his ability to affect the game with his athleticism, but he's also proven to be smart, very hardworking, and be able to take in a lot of information and churn that out,” O’Connell said. “Now we really want to give him the opportunity to really start building a comfort level not only with the system but with the guys.” Both Murray and McCarthy will play when the Vikings begin preseason against the New York Giants on Saturday. O’Connell outlined that the former Michigan quarterback still has a future with the franchise, adding: “As he knows, he's holding the pen on his story and we're going to support him and try to just help him continue to improve as a young player in the most difficult position in sports.” When healthy, Murray is still considered one of the league’s premier athletes at the quarterback position. However, he hasn’t been able to demonstrate that ability in recent seasons amid recurring long-term injuries. After missing just three games across his first three seasons combined, Murray suffered a torn ACL in Week 14 of the 2022 season that forced him to miss the remainder of the year and the first nine games of the following season. In 2025, Murray suffered a foot injury in Week 5 and did not play for the remainder of the year. Then-head coach Jonathan Gannon opted to start quarterback Jacoby Brissett for the remainder of the season while Murray was placed on injured reserve. Now, Murray will have arguably the best supporting cast of his NFL career. He'll work with O'Connell, tight end T.J. Hockenson, and receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, and as the starter, he now gets a month of full-time practice with the offense, having split reps with McCarthy through the first two weeks of training camp. Murray and the Vikings begin the 2026 NFL season against the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday, Sept. 13.