It isn\u2019t a dip of the toe into the free-agency pool.<\/p>\n
This is O\u2019Connell, in a skin-tight Speedo, doing a double-flip off the high dive.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Connell and the Vikings could have been more conservative. They could have tried harder to trade for San Francisco 49ers backup Mac Jones or swing a deal for former New Orleans Saints (and longtime Las Vegas Raiders) starter Derek Carr. They could have targeted a stopgap veteran like Geno Smith (who was traded to the Jets<\/a> Tuesday) or Joe Flacco. Or they could have initiated a schmaltzy reunion with Cousins, who\u2019ll turn 38 this summer.<\/p>\n Instead, O\u2019Connell will roll with Murray, who\u2019s nine years younger than Cousins and possesses a far more dynamic skill set.<\/p>\n In doing so, O\u2019Connell will demonstrate vulnerability by essentially admitting a failure. Despite a dramatic debut<\/a> last September, J.J. McCarthy, the 10th selection in the 2024 NFL Draft, clearly isn\u2019t regarded (by O\u2019Connell or anyone else) as the Vikings\u2019 long-term answer at quarterback.<\/p>\n Some of that blame fell on Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, who was fired in January<\/a> after four years as Minnesota\u2019s general manager. Yet it\u2019s also apparent O\u2019Connell wasn\u2019t able to develop McCarthy into the player the organization hoped he\u2019d become. And that misfire accentuated a run of regrettable choices<\/a> \u2014 including passing<\/a> on four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers last spring \u2014 that created the mess the Vikings are trying to clean up by signing Murray.<\/p>\n As much as O\u2019Connell may have winced watching Darnold help the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl LX victory last month \u2014 given that the QB was essentially gifted<\/a> to the eventual champions the previous March \u2014 getting drowned by regret is not a winning strategy.<\/p>\n Reviving a motivated Murray, who\u2019s reeling from a midseason benching that ended his six-and-a-half-year stint as the Cardinals\u2019 starter, absolutely could be.<\/p>\n For O\u2019Connell, who remains the most powerful presence in the Vikings\u2019 universe, it better be.<\/p>\n The Vikings are expected to hire a new GM after the draft, but this is very much O\u2019Connell\u2019s show \u2014 and it will either be a \u201cHamilton\u201d-level Broadway smash or a flop akin to Elton John\u2019s \u201cTammy Faye.\u201d<\/p>\n O\u2019Connell could have chosen a safer option with a higher floor and lower ceiling, but he locked in on the 2018 Heisman Trophy winner who\u2019s so athletically adept that he went ninth in the 2018 MLB Draft. Murray doesn\u2019t have the height most NFL teams desire when choosing a QB (he\u2019s listed at 5-10), but he\u2019s fast and elusive and has an amazing arm.<\/p>\n Remember the Hail Murray<\/a>? How many humans could even dream about making that throw?<\/p>\n Murray had two Pro Bowl seasons with the Cardinals, but he only went to the playoffs once, and it did not go well.\u00a0O\u2019Connell, who\u2019s 43-25 in the regular season but 0-2 in the postseason, has a similar stigma to erase.<\/p>\n Together, perhaps, they can blow up those narratives and strive to create a Sean Payton\/Drew Brees-type vibe.<\/p>\n Undoubtedly, that is what O\u2019Connell envisions. Signing Murray is a move born of arrogance, and I say that lovingly. As someone who approaches his own craft with, shall we say, a heightened sense of self, I have a soft spot for driven people who take big swings rooted in an immense faith in their own capacities.<\/p>\n Like O\u2019Connell, I can also relate to experiencing extreme disappointment and swallowing the accompanying fallout. Murray, too, has been humbled, and that should work to the Vikings\u2019 advantage.<\/p>\n \n Kyler Murray looks on from the sideline during a late-season Arizona Cardinals game. (Chris Coduto \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n He has absorbed a healthy share of scrutiny and criticism, some of it self-inflicted. In a 2021 New York Times profile<\/a>,\u00a0Murray leaned into his reputation for not being a grinder, saying, \u201cI think I was blessed with the cognitive skills to just go out there and just see it before it happens. I\u2019m not one of those guys that\u2019s going to sit there and kill myself watching film. I don\u2019t sit there for 24 hours and break down this team and that team and watch every game because, in my head, I see so much.\u201d<\/p>\n The next spring, Murray engaged in a messy contract fight that ended up further damaging his reputation, unless the goal was to impress fellow video-game aficionados. Murray\u2019s five-year, $230.5 million contract included an \u201cindependent study addendum\u201d<\/a>\u00a0requiring him to review four hours of game film per week on his own time.<\/p>\n![\"Kyler](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GettyImages-2250607442-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/p>\n