Minneapolis, Minn. (WCCO/WGR) - The Buffalo Bills will face a new starting quarterback when they visit the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Vikings starter Kyler Murray has already been declared out for the contest due to a hamstring injury. That means Minnesota will, once again, turn to veteran quarterback Carson Wentz.
Head coach Kevin O'Connell said Thursday that Murray will be week-to-week, and is looking forward to Wentz jump-starting what has been an extremely stagnant offense.
"Obviously, there's a ton of confidence in Carson," O'Connell said. "He's already helped us, had a major, major role in two wins, this year against two really good teams, and he's a steadying presence, a guy we know can go in and play good football."
O'Connell is concerned that the team would be putting Murray at risk by playing him through the injury, possibly turning it into a more significant injury than it already is. While declining to specify the severity of the injury, O'Connell stressed the importance of a cautious approach with an injury that can linger if it's not fully healed. Wide receiver Justin Jefferson wound up missing seven games with a hamstring strain in 2023.
With Murray struggling to find a rhythm throwing the ball, the Vikings will be wary to send him out if he can't run at full speed.
“Just knowing that Kyler needs his mobility, it's a big huge part of what makes him an effective player,” O'Connell said.
Wentz came in after Murray was injured in the first quarter of the season-opening victory over the Green Bay Packers, and started in Minnesota's Week 2 win in Chicago against the Bears.
Murray has started each game since then, but the offense has really struggled to be consistent. The Vikings are coming off their first loss of the season in Detroit, a 19-15 loss to the Lions that saw the offense unable to get in a groove.
“Whether it's me or somebody else, there's too many, ‘My bads,'” Murray said after Sunday's loss. “It's not good enough. It got us beat."
Murray had a season-high two touchdown passes and delivered the go-ahead score to tight end T.J. Hockenson in the fourth quarter after a 51-yard throw to Jordan Addison, but the eighth-year veteran had an afternoon of indecision in the pocket and incompletions down the field. Murray went 17-of-29 for 210 yards, with just five completions for 33 yards and a touchdown on nine targets to Jefferson, whose exasperation was such that he declined to conduct his postgame interview session with reporters.
“We’ve got to find ways to get him the ball. Obviously, he’s frustrated, and that’s understandable,” said Murray, whose five full games with the Vikings have yielded an average of 18 points. "He is who he is, and he has every right to feel the way he feels when he doesn’t get the ball. So that’s on us to find ways to get him the ball.”
Murray played the entire game in Detroit, but was hurt on a read-option run in the fourth quarter when he turned the corner past star defensive end Aidan Hutchinson for a 9-yard gain. An MRI exam on Monday confirmed the strain after he had reported soreness.
O'Connell says Murray will not go on the injured list, meaning the team believes he may only miss a game or two.
Since Kirk Cousins tore his Achilles in a game in Green Bay on Oct. 29, 2023, O'Connell and the Vikings - over a span of 52 games - will have switched starting quarterbacks for injury or performance 17 different times, including 14 in-season changes and five in-game.
It doesn't get any easier for the Vikings going forward, with a very difficult November schedule. It begins with MVP-candidate Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills coming in for "Monday Night Football".
Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m. EST.
Kyler Murray will not play for Minnesota due to a hamstring strain
