Who Should I Start? Kyler Murray or Desmond Ridder

Monday, June 22, 8:58 AM

Entering 2026, Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kyler Murray is in need of a career reboot. The 28-year-old missed 12 games in 2025 with a foot injury, marking the third time in the last four seasons that he's missed at least six games. Murray's production has also been in gradual decline since his peak years in 2020 and 2021, which led him to sign a massive contract extension with the Arizona Cardinals. As he enters his first year with Minnesota, Murray is currently competing for the QB1 role with incumbent Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy. While McCarthy is a former first-round draft pick, he completed just 57.6% of his passes and threw 12 interceptions across 12 starts for the Vikings in 2025. If Murray can win the starting job, he'll be working with one of the league's better play-callers in Kevin O'Connell and throwing to an elite trio of wide receivers in Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and Jauan Jennings. Murray also brings dual-threat upside for fantasy managers, as he's just a season removed from rushing for 572 yards and five touchdowns across 17 games for the Cardinals in 2024. Murray's profile obviously carries significant risk, but his current redraft ADP of QB17 may not be accurately capturing his upside.