A year ago, the Minnesota Vikings could have had their pick of quarterbacks. Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones were both available, and Aaron Rodgers was reportedly in the mix, but the Vikings chose to build around J.J. McCarthy, the No. 10 pick in 2024, who missed his entire rookie season with a knee injury. McCarthy’s first year as a starter didn’t go as planned, and the team finished 9-8.
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However, the fallout was a front office shake-up and a one-year bet on Kyler Murray. But with Murray now struggling too, former general manager of the New York Jets Mike Tannenbaum argued the Vikings should stop patching the problem and reunite with the quarterback they didn’t keep.
“Kyler Murray isn’t playing good enough right now like his accuracy his off-target throws are one of the worst in the league. Justin Jefferson was visibly upset this play right here before the half was an inexcusable interception. If I’m the Vikings, I go after Daniel Jones,” Tannenbaum said on ESPN’s Get Up. “He was on their practice squad a year ago.
“You’re not starting from scratch. You bring Daniel Jones in. He’s not great, but he’s going to play better, in my opinion, than Kyler Murray. If they have Daniel Jones, they have a chance to win the division. Without him, I don’t think they do.”
The playstyles of Daniel Jones and Kyler Murray are quite different. At 6’5″ and 230 lbs, Jones relies on straight-line speed and size. His rushing production primarily comes from designed quarterback draws and read-options.
Although Jones builds up impressive long-speed, he comparatively lacks lateral quickness, often lowering his shoulder to absorb contact at the end of runs rather than making defenders miss.
Meanwhile, Kyler Murray, at 5’10” and 207 lbs, is an agile, twitchy playmaker who relies on acceleration and lateral cuts. Compared to Jones, Murray rarely absorbs heavy hits, preferring to slide or step out of bounds.
In terms of their overall NFL career, Murray leads the statistics. However, the differentiating factor facilitating Mike Tannenbaum’s assessment comes from the Jones 2026 season performance.
With a 2-6 record as the Indianapolis Colts QB1, Daniel Jones has racked up 1,542 passing yards. Meanwhile, Kyler Murray, despite boasting a 5-1 record, has only thrown for 1,022 yards. But this isn’t the sole factor behind Tannenbaum’s call for the Vikings to sign the Colts QB1.
Daniel Jones is familiar and well accustomed to the current Vikings coaching staff. As such, after his release from the New York Giants in late 2024, Minnesota signed Jones to a one-year deal, immediately placing him on the practice squad.
He spent the back half of that season deeply embedded in the quarterback room as a backup, mastering Kevin O’Connell’s playbook and offensive language firsthand. To that end, the Vikings coaching staff raved about Jones’ time in Minnesota.
“Our experience with him was nothing but positive, and so to me he’s got a little bit more insight instead of some other guys as far as what we do,” Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores said.
Although both Kyler Murray and Daniel Jones remain part of their respective franchises, it will be interesting to see if the Vikings heed Mike Tannenbaum’s wish.