The Vikings quarterback situation went from shaky to urgent in about three hours on Monday night. Carson Wentz completed 8 of 25 passes for 81 yards with two interceptions and a lost fumble in a 23-6 loss to Buffalo, Kyler Murray is still out with a hamstring strain, and the NFL trade deadline arrives at 4 p.m. ET Tuesday, before Minnesota has a chance to sort any of it out on the field.
Minnesota is 6-2 and still in playoff position. But the Vikings have scored 21 points across their last two games, both losses, and they head to Green Bay on Sunday with no clear answer at the most important position on the field.
How the Vikings quarterback room got here
This was supposed to be the year Minnesota found stability. After cycling through J.J. McCarthy, Wentz and Max Brosmer in 2025, the Vikings signed Murray to a one-year deal after his release from Arizona and named him the starter over McCarthy in August.
It hasn’t gone to plan. Murray was knocked out of the opener with a concussion 11 snaps into his Vikings debut, and Wentz came on to lead a comeback over Green Bay in which Minnesota scored 28 straight points. Wentz then started a 9-3 win in Chicago in Week 2. Minnesota traded McCarthy to the New York Giants on Sept. 28 for a 2027 fifth-round pick after Jaxson Dart’s season-ending knee surgery left New York short.
Murray returned and the wins kept coming, but the offense never really did. Before Monday, Minnesota ranked 29th in yards per game, 31st in passing and 27th in scoring at 20 points per game, according to NFL.com. The defense carried a 6-1 start, allowing a league-low 13.3 points per game.
Then came the hamstring. Murray got hurt on a read-option run late in the Week 8 loss at Detroit, and imaging later confirmed a strain. Tom Pelissero reported it was a Grade 2 strain that could keep him out beyond the Bills game. Kevin O’Connell called him week to week and said injured reserve was “not under consideration at all.”
Monday night exposed the gap
Wentz had been a useful fill-in in September, but neither of those wins asked him to carry an offense. In those two games he completed 23 of 39 passes for 276 yards and three touchdowns, never topping 150 passing yards in either one.
Against Buffalo, the floor gave way. Wentz went 1 of 8 in the second half, according to the Associated Press. Dorian Williams and Terrel Bernard intercepted him, and an early backward pass to Justin Jefferson bounced off Jefferson’s hands and was recovered by Greg Rousseau after a Bills challenge. Minnesota went 0 for 7 on third down, finished with 178 total yards and held the ball for only 17:28. Wentz also checked into the medical tent for what the AP called an apparent lower leg injury, and Brosmer finished the game, going 6 of 7 for 58 yards.
O’Connell didn’t blame his backup. He said the loss was “100% on me,” per the AP, and he faulted himself for calling too few runs. Jordan Mason and Aaron Jones combined for 11 carries in a game where Minnesota trailed by one score until the final six minutes.
Jefferson, targeted 11 times for three catches and 58 yards, put it on the receivers to make plays. We broke down how Buffalo controlled the game in our Bills vs Vikings recap.
Murray isn’t a sure fix either
The tempting answer is to wait for Murray. The numbers say that may not be enough on its own.
Murray has thrown five touchdown passes in his last five starts and ranked 26th of 31 qualified quarterbacks in adjusted EPA per play, per FTW Outdoors, citing RBSDM.com. ESPN noted his 44.7 QBR, and that he had run only 13 times in his five starts after a seven-scramble game against New Orleans in Week 4. A hamstring strain is the worst kind of injury for a quarterback whose value depends on his legs, which is exactly why O’Connell held him out.
| Quarterback | 2026 role | Key number |
|---|---|---|
| Kyler Murray | Starter, out with hamstring strain | 44.7 QBR, per ESPN |
| Carson Wentz | Backup, 2-1 as starter or relief | 8 of 25, 81 yards vs. Buffalo |
| Max Brosmer | No. 3 | 6 of 7, 58 yards in relief Monday |
What the Vikings quarterback market looks like at the deadline
This is where general manager Nolan Teasley comes in. He spent years in Seattle’s front office under John Schneider, and Pelissero has said he expects Minnesota to be active before 4 p.m. ET.
The quarterback options are thin. ESPN’s Adam Schefter has said he is watching the Vikings’ quarterback position, and he floated the Colts’ Daniel Jones as a possible target. But Pelissero reported Saturday that Indianapolis has told interested teams it is not trading Jones. Baltimore already landed Jacoby Brissett from Arizona last week.
That may push Minnesota toward the run game instead. The Colts’ Jonathan Taylor has been linked to the Vikings for weeks, but SI’s Albert Breer reported the Vikings and Broncos “might be a little less inclined” to trade for him now, and Pelissero has said Taylor’s most likely destination is staying in Indianapolis. Our Jonathan Taylor trade breakdown covers the asking price.
The Star Tribune put it plainly after Monday’s game: whether Teasley can make a move that makes this offense a match for its defense is the question of the day.
Vikings at Packers with the NFC North slipping
The loss already cost Minnesota first place. At 6-2, the Vikings now sit behind 7-2 Chicago by winning percentage, and Detroit is also 6-2. The Bears are on bye this week, which gives Minnesota a chance to pull back level, but only if it wins at Lambeau Field.
Sunday’s game at Green Bay kicks off at 1 p.m. ET on FOX. The Packers are 6-3 and just put up 45 points in New England. O’Connell had not announced a starter for that game as of Tuesday morning, and the Vikings planned to reassess Murray’s hamstring this week.
If Murray can’t go, Minnesota is looking at another week with the quarterback who just posted a 5.2 passer rating, against a team that will have watched every snap of the Bills game. The trade deadline is the Vikings’ last chance to change that equation from the outside.
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