Vikings Coach Offers Non-Answer on Kyler Murray vs. J.J. McCarthy Debate

Is it a true quarterback competition? Assistant head coach Frank Smith said a lot without actually answering the question.

Kyler Murray during Vikings offseason workouts. | Image courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings (Ali Rusco)

Frank Smith, in his first season as the assistant head coach under Kevin O'Connell with the Vikings, was in top form with coach speak as he dodged a question about a potential quarterback competition between Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy.

If you're late to the party, NFL insiders, particularly NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, continue to preach that Murray and McCarthy will be competing for the starting job. Logic says otherwise, as Murray is an established star and McCarthy is a 23-year-old with 10 mediocre starts under his belt.

Appearing as a guest of former NFL player Terron Armstead's podcast, "The Set," Smith was asked if "this is a true quarterback competition." Smith dodged the question like Neo leaning backwards in "The Matrix" and watching speeding bullets whizz by him in slow motion.

"What are we doing, especially right now? We want to teach skills and fundamentals that are going to be able to translate all the way to February. We're building a foundation that is going to sustain the highs and lows of the NFL season," Smith began.

"So to talk about positions and what everything is playing out, like, ultimately, everyone here in this program is trying to get better than we were the year before. Everyone is trying to improve on their knowledge of our scheme and how we want to evolve and do things for this next season. So, to say where is everyone at and all that, like, hey, man, we're in phase two, week two."

Smith wasn't done, despite Armstead chuckling and saying, "I gotta ask."

"You want to talk about all kinds of stuff that are way down the road. I'm worried about making sure today was at the standard at which we want to get it done to, and I think all the guys on this offense are really, 'Who do we want to be? And let's build an identity, and let's build a communication system that allows us to be successful the whole year,'" Smith said.

"I think whether it's quarterback, wideout, running back, tight end, O-line, coaches, that's our challenge right now, to get on the same page and make sure our expectations are what we want to be so we can make sure we can get to where we want to be when it matters."

The Murray-McCarthy discussion will be a topic that the Vikings dance around all summer. Perhaps when training camp arrives, we'll get a better picture of what the Vikings are actually considering, but until McCarthy and Murray are splitting first-team reps, it's Murray's job.