The Minnesota Vikings have made it clear that they’re interested in adding to their quarterback room this offseason, and there are expected to be a handful of veteran options available.
One of those options is former Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, and he was recently linked to Minnesota by NFL insiders Dan Graziano and Jeremy Fowler.
While Murray may be an upgrade over current Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy, not everyone is convinced that Murray would solve Minnesota’s problem.
Quarterback-turned-analyst Dan Orlovsky, on a recent episode of NFL Live, explained why Murray to the Vikings wouldn’t be the ideal pairing. The analyst said he likes the idea of the veteran quarterback in Minnesota, but he doesn’t love it.
The reason is because of a conversation he had with Murray ahead of a Monday Night Football game, where the veteran quarterback said he still wants to be a playmaker, emphasizing that he needs to have the ball in his hands more and also use his legs more.
Orlovsky pointed out how that’s different than how Minnesota uses its quarterbacks, where the position is expected to be more of a point guard.
"Kyler, in his own words, has said, ‘I still want to be a playmaker.’ I remember calling 'Monday Night Football' last year and having conversations with Kyler [about] how do we get better as an offense, he’s like, 'I need the ball in my hands more; I need to go be a playmaker and use my legs more to impact the game.'
That’s not really how [the Vikings'] offense is built to be played. That’s not really how Kevin O’Connell wants his quarterback to play."
Dan Orlovsky argues Kyler Murray would be a style clash with the Minnesota Vikings
Orlovsky went on to say that head coach Kevin O’Connell, who focuses on the offensive side of the ball, just asks his quarterbacks to be average, since everything else will be above average.
Instead of flat-out dooming this possible pairing, Orlovsky ended his point by asking if Kyler Murray would be willing to make that change in Minnesota.
While that’s certainly a fair point worth interrogating, it’s also reasonable to assume that O’Connell and Murray could figure things out.
The Vikings head coach is a respected offensive mind, so he should be able to tailor some things to a dynamic quarterback’s skillset, and Murray is an experienced, talented quarterback who should be able to make slight adjustments to his game as well.
If both are willing, this is a pairing that has potential to work.