JJ McCarthy has already spent too much of his short Minnesota Vikings run on the outside looking in. He missed his entire rookie 2024 season with a torn meniscus, got back on the field in 2025, and then kept getting knocked out again as injuries piled up. That history, combined with the struggles when he was actually on the field, is why Vikings legends are now calling the quarterback competition between him and Kyler Murray one-sided.

“I don’t think it’s going to be a circus to be quite honest with you,” former Vikings running back Chuck Foreman said on the JimBob Sports Jamboree Podcast. “I think it’s already known who’s going to be the starter. He might pretend it’s going to be competition, but we know what JJ can do. We know he is immature and inexperienced. Carson Wentz, he came in and did a really good job for a minute, but then he fell off because he got injured.

“And then you went and got Kyler Murray, who, number one, when you’re a two-time Texas Player of the Year in football in high school, you’re the real deal. Then you go to college, then you’re the number one guy off the board, and you go in and get drafted by a crappy team. Now he’s got an opportunity to come and play with some really good football players.”

McCarthy’s 2025 stat line – 1,632 passing yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 picks – left enough doubt for Foreman to choose Murray as the starter. In just 10 games last season, McCarthy got sacked 27 times. In his brief, inconsistent outings, McCarthy failed to show he can make plays when the pocket breaks down. In comparison, Foreman pointed to Murray’s legs giving Minnesota a real edge.

“Hopefully, Kyler Murray will get here with his ability,” Foreman said. “Plus, his escapability is unbelievable. So, I think that’s going to be a big plus, too. So, that’s the way I look at it.”

Fox analyst Colin Cowherd made a similar case from outside the building, saying “everybody in the room knows quarterback is the issue,” and that Murray will be the starter “because the players think he’s more talented.” He even suggested that McCarthy’s career might take off elsewhere, but in Minnesota, “it’s not going to work.”

JJ McCarthy has said on two different occasions that the rep splits with Kyler Murray and that the noise around it is beyond his control. The Vikings are opening training camp on August 1st, which runs through the 20th. This leaves McCarthy with less than three weeks of practice reps to look like the quarterback Minnesota thought it drafted 10th overall.

On the contrary, Murray’s on a one-year, veteran minimum prove-it deal in Minnesota. Vikings legends like Sam Smith Sr. call him “Check-down Charlie” for keeping things safe with short-yardage plays. This could, per Smith Sr, create “a little bit of claustrophobia” for Murray and the offense.

Neither quarterback is perfect, and perhaps that’s why head coach Kevin O’Connell has kept the competition open even now. JJ McCarthy has the talent for sure, but Chuck Foreman wants him to play “mature football” and display some leadership in his third NFL season.