Kyler Murray is on the clock despite leading the Minnesota Vikings to a sixth straight victory, defeating the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.
Michael Irvin doesn’t see the Vikings making a deep playoff run with Murray at quarterback.
The Vikings signed Murray in the offseason to address their quarterback issues. In the six wins (including the win over the Colts), the Vikings offense has scored 39, 9, 23, 15, 23, and 16 points. They average 20.8 points per game, 29th in the league (only four teams average fewer points).
Murray completed 14 of 24 passes for 150 yards and scored one touchdown. He also added 39 yards using his feet. So far, as the Vikings starter, he has 83 completions for 812 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions.
Murray has thrown fewer touchdowns than Daniel Jones,Malik Willis,Geno Smith,CJ Stroud,Jacoby Brissett, and Cam Ward—all of them have won two or fewer games in 2026. And that’s why Dallas Cowboys icon Michael Irvin urged the Vikings to drop Murray. Irvin said on the latest episode of ESPN’s First Take:
This offense will hold them back from a deep playoff run.
Irvin highlighted that the defense has been key to the Vikings’ success. According to FOX Sports metrics, Brian Flores’ Vikings defense ranks No. 1 after seven weeks. However, Irvin cautioned that they can’t maintain the same standards the entire campaign. He added:
With that defense that only gives up 12 points a game, and you’re trying to make this offense more run-centric; that’s why Kyler Murray, I believe, is their starting quarterback over Carson Wentz.
However, being a former receiver, Irvin would prefer Kevin O’Connell switch to a pass-heavy offense to unleash All-Pro wideout, Justin Jefferson.
Jefferson’s the best receiver in football. Despite the constant changes at quarterback, the former first-rounder has put up massive numbers. He won the best offensive player award in 2022 after racking up 128 receptions for 1,809 yards and 8 touchdowns. He has crossed 1000 yards in each of his six seasons.
This year, Murray has targeted Jefferson 31 times. He has 23 receptions for 302 yards (13.1 yards per catch) and 3 touchdowns. He ranks 44th in the league, sandwiched between Colts WR Josh Downs and Raiders tight end Michael Mayer. Raiders’ second-year running back Ashton Jeanty has ten more yards than him.
Irvin believes Jefferson’s numbers would improve if the Vikings started Carson Wentz instead of Murray:
If you make that switch and go to [Carson] Wentz, then the passing game becomes the primary for the Minnesota Vikings, and you can push past scoring 18, 20 points a game and get up.
Wentz stepped in after Murray . He threw 12 completions for 133 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 39-22 win over rivals, the Green Bay Packers. The following week, he went 11 of 20 for 143 yards. Minnesota won 9-3.
The Vikings brought Wentz in as JJ McCarthy’s backup last year. He went 2-3 in five starts. He completed 110 passes for 1216 yards, 6 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions. He re-signed on a one-year, $3 million contract.
Murray won the starter’s job before, with Wentz as his backup. McCarthy fell to . The former Michigan star and first-round draft pick was .
Now the question is: why should the Vikings make a change now? Sure, the offense has been average at best with Murray, but they are winning games. Moreover, Murray hasn’t turned the ball over in three of the six games. More importantly, his scrambling ability is an asset O’Connell hasn’t fully utilized. Murray remains scoreless on the ground as a Viking but scored 32 during his time with Arizona. It’s best to keep the offense together.