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Kevin O’Connell’s defiant message in Vikings’ Kyler Murray-JJ McCarthy QB battle
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- Kevin O’Connell’s defiant message in Vikings’ Kyler Murray-JJ McCarthy QB battle
Kevin O'Connell's defiant message in Vikings' Kyler Murray-JJ McCarthy QB battle appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Minnesota Vikings watched Sam Darnold win a Super Bowl in his first season with the Seattle Seahawks after their own quarterback situation partially prevented them from advancing to the playoffs. Despite JJ McCarthy 's struggles and injury problems, the squad still finished with a 9-8 record in the grueling NFC North. Kevin O'Connell is confident the franchise will bounce back in a big way if it receives stability at QB.
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Both McCarthy and expected starter Kyler Murray are working to provide that crucial quality. Minnesota's head coach explained his big-picture perspective on this competition.
"The goal going into this offseason was to elevate the quarterback position, because when we have a certain standard of play — we feel like we have multiple guys in that room that are capable of achieving that standard — the Minnesota Vikings win football games," O'Connell told "The Dan Patrick Show." "The best way to achieve that is by having a daily attempt to have guys push each other."
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Murray failed to reach his potential with the Arizona Cardinals , but the 2019 No. 1 draft pick will now work with an offensive guru like O'Connell and an elite wide receiver talent in Justin Jefferson . McCarthy could also be poised for a breakthrough, especially given his lack of experience through two NFL seasons. The Vikings expect clarity by summer's end. They do not want to waffle between the two signal-callers.
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"Kyler has come in and done a great job," Kevin O'Connell said. "JJ I think has benefited from it, he had a really good spring. Carson Wentz is this veteran quarterback in the room. As a guy who's played seven or eight quarterbacks in four years, the two years we had our starter play the whole season, we won 13 and 14 games. So, we want to try to get back to the standard of having the quarterback position be a driving force behind us winning."
Consistency under center is always vital, but it seems particularly pertinent on this squad. The man tapped to fill that role will ideally be better equipped to do so after having gone through an intense QB battle.
Related: Vikings rumors: Lack of playoff success 'not lost' on Justin Jefferson
Related: Weak link that will sink Vikings' Super Bowl hopes during 2026 season
