With the Vikings, Could it Really Be Anybody Else?

Yesterday, Vikings Territory offered a piece detailing the trio of defenders who have been put on notice. Think players who are fighting for their job and/or roster spot in a unique way due to offseason adds.

Turning the attention toward the offense leads to a predictable focus, so dancing around the issue makes next to no sense.

Indeed, the Vikings are throwing some chin music at J.J. McCarthy. Doing so is not in service of replacing him since Minnesota’s leadership has given up. Rather, the plan involves introducing a player into the mix who is capable of replacing McCarthy: Kyler Murray. That distinction — capable rather than inevitable — is what it’s all about.

The Vikings & The QB Chin Music

Spending some time on NFL Next Gen Stats can help to clarify what sort of season Mr. McCarthy had in 2025. In particular, the visuals charting the completions he made from week-to-week really drive the point home: McCarthy does better of passing toward the outside of the field.

Opening up the middle of the field would therefore appear to be a way for the kid to improve.

In an ideal world, an NFL passer will be capable of touching just about every blade of grass. Josh Allen can throw a ball that is 50 yards downfield and 5 yards downfield. Allen can throw to the outside and the middle. Essentially, the Bills’ QB1 forces a defense to protect the field vertically, horizontally, and everywhere in between.

That’s a very important detail. Think of a basketball player who can’t hit a layup with his left hand. The defender can work toward forcing the shooter toward that inefficient option. Similarly, defenses knew about McCarthy’s limitations when facing the Vikings.

Something that would really help McCarthy is being able to threaten the middle of the field. After all, that Justin Jefferson guy happens to be alright at targeting the middle somewhere around 20 yards down the field.

If you need a visual, check out the route charts on Next Gen Stats for Jefferson in 2024 when Sam Darnold was still in town. Plenty of completions took place along the outside. So, too, were there a pile that were in the middle of the field. Note: that’s the point. Attacking everywhere makes it difficult for a defense to overload a particular area.

The Vikings cannot have another season where the starter struggles to feature Mr. Jefferson.

Obviously, the other detail to watch with McCarthy is increased accuracy overall (likely due to greater comfort in the offense alongside better mechanics). The kid saw a terrible 57.6% of his passes completed in 2025. Do note, though, that his receivers sometimes struggled to secure the football.

Likewise, seeing the offensive line take a step forward as the running game becomes potent would be a nice boost.

What’s really pouring gasoline onto the fire is the presence of Kyler Murray.

In Murray, the Vikings have somebody who is more than capable of being an NFL starter. What remains to be seen is if Murray will be the best option for the Vikings. See the distinction?

What’s up for debate is not whether the former Cardinal is capable of being a team’s QB1. The Vikings believe that’s the case, leading to the decision to sign him. Rather, what’s actually debatable is whether Murray will give the Vikings a better chance of winning in 2026.

McCarthy’s task involves proving that he remains the franchise passer worthy of being chosen at No. 10 overall even as the QB room boasts a capable placement.

J.J. McCarthy, 23, is entering his third season in the NFL. Nobody in Minnesota is facing more pressure.

Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.