Daily Norseman
The Minnesota Vikings began phase two of OTAs last week and in addition to the quarterback competition, there were some hints and bits and pieces that may prove insightful when it comes to scheme, who makes the roster, and the depth charts.
I’ve included notes from both practices open to reporters- last Wednesday and this Thursday.
Let’s get into it.
From the comments of local beat writers who attended last Wednesday’s OTA, J.J. McCarthy looked improved, but Kyler Murray was better. From Kevin Seifert of ESPN:
In the team’s second OTA of the spring, and the first open to local media members, Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy both took snaps with projected starters and against the likely first-team defense. If you were drawing up a plan to give each player fair and equal time to prove they are the team’s best option, this would be it.
But you can only have a genuine competition if there is actual uncertainty about who the best quarterback on the roster is. With the caveat that this was one day in May, with no pads and some drills performed at half speed, it is only fair to point out that the gap between the two quarterbacks was not close…
Murray made all of the best throws of the practice, demonstrating his downfield touch and accuracy. Nothing McCarthy did was objectionable, and one of his few incompletions — a pass to the flat that cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. nearly intercepted — occurred when two receivers drifted far too close to each other.
Overall, the afternoon was a reminder that McCarthy could continue along the upward trajectory he established at the end of last season — and still fall well short of matching Murray’s experience, arm talent and potential to make big plays in the passing game.
Seifert’s comments on the competition stood out to me for being unusually blunt. Normally his comments can be a bit more balanced (i.e. they both did some things well, struggled with others, we’ll have to wait and see who emerges, etc.) but he made it clear that Murray is the better quarterback and even with some improvement McCarthy may well lose this competition.
Alec Lewis with The Athletic framed it this way, calling the competition “manufactured”:
Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy took a similar number of snaps. Both threw to star receivers. Each received hands-on, on-field feedback from head coach Kevin O’Connell. Nothing about the structure favored one player over the other.
But it didn’t have to for the odds to feel dramatically tilted in Murray’s direction.
Murray, picked No. 1 in 2019 by the Arizona Cardinals, showcased his feel as a passer with several touch throws…
It would not have taken long Wednesday for any casual observer to recognize Murray’s immense talent.
He climbed the pocket and lofted a pass toward undrafted free-agent receiver Dillon Bell. The catch...
