Rich: Why the Vikings Should Stick with Kyler Murray Despite Minnesota’s 1st Loss of the Year

There are no more undefeated teams in the NFL. Minnesota was the last to drop one, falling in a close game, and the conversation on The Rich Eisen Show went straight to the quarterback.

The question was whether the Vikings, now 6-1, should do anything drastic with Kyler Murray. Rich's answer was no, and the idea of trading for a quarterback in the next week got even less patience.

"This business of them acquiring a quarterback in the next week is absurd," Rich said. "It's not even worth discussing."

The Big Game That Hasn't Come

The doubt is real, and it came from inside the studio. One voice at the desk said he is still waiting for Murray to have that big game. The response: "You're going to keep waiting."

Murray did just have his first multiple passing touchdown game with the Vikings, but one of them needed Justin Jefferson to make what was called "the catch of the year," tipping the ball to himself and grabbing it with one hand. And Minnesota's loss came down to a choice to punt from its own 33 with 3:01 left on fourth and four. The Vikings never got the ball back.

Rich wasn't going to pile on Kevin O'Connell for that call. With a 19-15 game, "you're thinking your defense is gonna get it back for you," he said. "I'm not going to get on Kevin O'Connell for that."

Getting Justin Jefferson the Ball

Jefferson was seen emoting on the sideline, which always starts a conversation about getting a star receiver more touches. Murray addressed it after the game.

"We got to find ways to get him the ball," Murray said. "Obviously they're going to double him, and they did today." He noted this is his first year with Jefferson, and that everybody who has been there understands how he gets played. "Obviously he's frustrated, and that's understandable," Murray said. "He has every right to feel the way he feels when he doesn't get the ball. So again, that's on us to find ways to get the ball."

Why Not a Trade?

Kirk Cousins came up as a fantasy option, with the suggestion that Minnesota would take him back in a second if Las Vegas allowed it. Rich shut that down on both ends.

"You cannot just welcome in somebody in the building and think it's all just ready to roll because it's a fantasy league. It's not," he said. "You don't just plug and play. It doesn't happen."

As for the Raiders, Rich said they should have "no intention of even answering a phone call" at 4-4. Cousins is "balling," the team is psyched to have him, and his role is also to make sure the next kid is ready. "You're not trading him."

Rich's larger point was that Minnesota already made its decision. The Vikings acquired Murray, went through the preseason and summer with him, and moved on from JJ McCarthy based on an evaluation that had to include Murray and Carson Wentz. "So the choice is, do you trade horses in midstream for Carson Wentz or stick with Kyler Murray?"

The Schedule Problem

The concern is points. Rich read off Minnesota's recent output: 16, 23, 15, 23 and nine. The 39 in week one, he said, was an outlier that came largely in the fourth quarter after Murray was already out of the game.

And the schedule gets harder. "Josh Allen's coming to town," Rich said, and after Buffalo come Green Bay, San Francisco and Atlanta. The estimate across the desk was that Minnesota will need 30 points to win each of the next three.

TJ sided with sticking with Murray. "I'm going to hang in there with Kyler, like six and one, right?" he said, adding that "a win is a win sometimes" and the defense is good enough to beat these teams.

Noah in Maine Makes the Case for Wentz

A caller, Noah in Maine, said he's getting on the Wentz boat. He said Murray "looked flat out bad" over the last two games, but argued the play-calling wasn't helping, with the screens and tight end throws that worked earlier falling by the wayside for deep shots.

Noah worried the team has "a level of just good enough that we can't really complain about it but not good enough to really win anything," and said the start reminded him of 2016, when Minnesota started 5-0 and missed the playoffs.

Rich's final read was that Minnesota stays the course, and if Murray struggles in the middle of a game, it'll be interesting to see if the Vikings look Wentz's way. Going back and forth rarely works out, he said. But bringing in somebody from outside in the next 10 days? "It's not going to happen."