of soft bench of Kyler Murray in favor of backup Carson Wentz could come Monday night against the Bills.
Officially, the Vikings say they are evaluating Murray’s hamstring injury, not whether Wentz is the quarterback that gives them a better chance to win. But Adam Schefter reported today on ESPN that the Vikings appear to be moving toward Wentz starting against the Bills. Which could have as much to do with Murray’s injury as Murray’s ineffectiveness.
“His status for Monday night is, at best, up in the air, and it looks like he’s leaning toward Carson Wentz starting Monday night,” Schefter said. “Everybody’s seen the games. It seems like, right now, there’s a question about the quarterback position, and how they’re going to handle it. And Carson Wentz looks like he’s in line to start Monday night, and you just have to wonder what’s going to happen at the quarterback position.”
Even against an injury-riddled Lions defense on Sunday, Murray struggled and Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell seemed to lose faith in Murray, giving the ball to the Lions with three minutes left in the fourth quarter instead of trusting Murray to convert a fourth-and-5.
After that shot, the Lions ran out the clock and Murray never touched the ball again. If Wentz starts Monday night and plays well against the Bills, it could be a long time before Murray touches the ball again.