00:00But let's begin at the bottom, if you will,
00:03which is the Minnesota Vikings.
00:04As Joe and I have talked a bit about some starting quarterback battles,
00:09Kyler Murray versus J.J. McCarthy is one of the most interesting
00:13in recent memory.
00:14When you think about narrative,
00:18when you think about draft capital spent,
00:22you think about where those two guys are in their career,
00:27the messaging from the franchise, the odds,
00:32and how the perception might be different
00:37for the two quarterbacks in this battle.
00:41Let's listen to Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy
00:45talking about that relationship.
00:50It's been great. It's been great.
00:52Obviously, I know he's a younger guy.
00:54So any way I can help him,
00:56obviously I feel like I've played seven years now, going on eight.
00:59So I'm considered a veteran, even though I don't see myself as that.
01:02Give him any knowledge that he needs.
01:05Again, we're both competitors,
01:07and I know we both won what's best for the team.
01:10Has he been receptive to hearing criticism?
01:12Of course, of course.
01:13He's overly receptive,
01:14and he's always communicating, asking questions,
01:17stuff like that, so it's been good.
01:19J.J., what's your relationship been like with Kyler so far?
01:22It's just like two guys in a classroom.
01:24You know, he sits on one side, I sit on the other side,
01:26and it's the coach's responsibility to teach us and coach us.
01:31Is there any awkwardness, like, between you two?
01:34Awkwardness, you know, it's just like the same feeling, you know,
01:37when you're in high school,
01:38and there's another person on the other side of the room.
01:40That's just kind of how it is.
01:41So I wouldn't say there's any awkwardness.
01:44All right, so here is the fascinating piece of that all, right, Joe?
01:50I don't mind J.J. McCarthy being competitive, right?
01:55I don't think he should just give up on being the Vikings' starting quarterback.
02:01But the messaging, I feel like Kyler is, hey, we're teammates here, right?
02:09I've got some experience under my belt,
02:11and we're going to attack this as Minnesota Vikings, okay?
02:16I think J.J. McCarthy, this town ain't big enough for the both of us.
02:21That's kind of the vibe I get here, Joe.
02:24We'll get to the odds in a second,
02:25but I'm curious your reaction hearing how I at least feel different
02:29McCarthy and Murray sound when being talked about one another.
02:33Well, I think Murray feels and knows in his heart he is the veteran,
02:38and he's accomplished much more in his NFL career than J.J. McCarthy
02:43up until this point, and he's confident in his ability.
02:46On the flip side, you have J.J. McCarthy that took on this persona as nine
02:51and never lived up to the expectations,
02:54looked like a deer in the headlights,
02:56looked like potentially the stage was too big for his physical attributes.
03:02And at times, when you only throw for 50 and 60 yards in an NFL game,
03:07that's absolutely pathetic when you have the NFL's elite wide receiver
03:11and J.J. standing out there on each and every play,
03:14and you can't get him and deliver him the football.
03:17And you had Jordan Addison.
03:18You had T.J. Hawkinson, an above-average tight end.
03:21And you couldn't throw for more than 100 yards in an NFL game is ridiculous.
03:26So, yeah, I think the pressure is on J.J. McCarthy to either put up or shut up.
03:31But I still think Kyler right now, Kevin, gives this team the best opportunity
03:36to potentially challenge for an NFC North title and make the playoffs.
03:41Let's not forget, we talked about how ridiculous it was that this team won, what,
03:46five games down the stretch to finish over 500?
03:49That was a pretty good run by O'Connell with no quarterback play at the end of the regular season.
03:55Yeah, that run, although, you know, you could say, oh, it cost the Vikings draft position, right?
04:04Could they have, you know, given themselves an opportunity to, you know,
04:07make an impact move somewhere else?
04:09Yes, absolutely so, but it kind of speaks to who the Vikings are in terms of a offensive play call
04:22or defensive play call or combination that people are going to believe in.
04:25And if they run up against teams that just don't have it, right,
04:29which is sometimes what you get at the end of a season,
04:32there were some good wins in there as well.
04:33But if you've got just teams that just don't have it, Joe,
04:36you're going to be able to take advantage of them, right?
04:40And that's what Minnesota was able to do.
04:43When I peel through the 2026 schedule here, it's an all right start.
04:51Home against Green Bay, going to be a tight line, right?
04:54At Chicago, at Tampa Bay, tough but manageable.
04:58Home against Miami, going to be booked as a favorite.
05:00I don't mean to look past New Orleans on the road, but a winnable game,
05:04a nice early bye, and then you're home against Indianapolis.
05:07Through those six games, first six, Joe, this should be at least a 500 football team
05:14based on the O'Connell Flores history, maybe regardless of who the quarterback is, right?
05:23And that really sets the stage for this Vikings team to be actually competitive in the NFC North.
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