Strong words from Nate Tice.
The signing of Kyler Murray is messy. Full stop. The Minnesota Vikings turned the show over to their first-round pick and showed immediate buyer's remorse with their moves this offseason. In fact, the signs were there during the season based on comments from players and head coach Kevin O'Connell.
I will admit I admire the Vikings organization for making a move immediately rather than letting the situation get out of control for a second season. Windows of winning are fleeting in the NFL. Injuries and teams improving make every year important. While it is important to plan for the future, you have to capitalize when you have the roster.
Yahoo Sports' Nate Tice believes the signing of Murray will immediately improve the roster, but his evaluation of Murray versus McCarthy was scathing.
"To start, Murray is way better than McCarthy. Even at Murray’s absolute worst, that is an objective fact. Murray’s worst is also better than Vikings backup Carson Wentz’s play this decade, and Murray has been better than a lot of quarterbacks throughout his career while wilting away with an Arizona Cardinals organization that’s on to another head coach and constantly rates among the league’s worst in the NFLPA report cards. Call of Duty release date memes or not, Murray has been a firmly league-average or better starter throughout his career."
Jokes aside, Tice described what Murray brings to the Vikings offense in 2026.
"He is an imperfect player. Much has always been made about his height, but he actually has solid bulk and is of course a great athlete. Since entering the NFL in 2019, Murray ranks first in QB hit rate (sacks + knockdowns) with just a 9.4% mark. He has had some injuries crop up, but he does a good job of getting rid of the ball (sometimes a bit too often) and avoids hits and sacks more often than is perceived. Murray’s sack rate for his career is right at league average, about the same as Kirk Cousins. and he also has some creation ability to help open up plays beyond the concepts called."
"What makes Murray’s fit with the Vikings so fascinating is how his style will merge with O’Connell’s modus operandi: getting under center and chucking it. Since O’Connell became Minnesota’s head coach in 2022, 56.4% of the Vikings’ early down snaps have been under center, which ranks second over that time. They also rank second in the amount of play action from under center they ran over that period. Murray has had 180 snaps of under-center play-action concepts since he’s entered the NFL. The Vikings have averaged 164 per season since 2022."
The Vikings will be must see tv on Sundays in 2026.