EAGAN, Minn. -- NFL teams rarely conduct the kind of quarterback competition the Minnesota Vikings have engaged in this summer, and there are some good reasons why.
From a practical sense, there aren't enough starting-caliber quarterbacks around the league for many teams to pit one against another. Practice reps are at a premium as coaches install complicated offenses.
Then there is also the possibility of unintended consequences -- namely that human nature will push players to support their personal favorite.
Play the No. 1 fantasy game
It's never too early to start your championship run. Create a league with friends and family, or join a public league today. Sign Up Now!
<!--replaced text below
We're back with another year of ESPN Fantasy Football and it's time to get started. Create a league with friends and family and draft before the start of the season! Sign Up Now >>
--> >
-->
Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell has cited the team's culture and leadership as bulwarks against any drama that his competition between Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy could otherwise create. During the first week of camp, ESPN asked four of the Vikings' eight 2025 captains how they were maintaining neutrality in the locker room, assuming they were.
If anything, what emerged was a sense that they, too, are being judged on how they perform during the process.
"Some people from the outside might have some noise and say the team's going to be divided and it's going to be this or that," safety Joshua Metellus said. "And our job as captains and leaders is to make sure the team is connected and knows that at the end of the day, there is competition in every room. This is just the one that's highlighted the most.
"So it's just more about getting the guys to understand what we're here for and understanding that we're here to get them better. So we have to be on our stuff on the defensive side to make sure they can get good looks, and it's not one-sided."
Vikings quarterbacks J.J. McCarthy, 9, and Kyler Murray are in the midst of an open battle to determine who will start in Week 1. David Berding/Getty Images In his 10th season, running back Aaron Jones Sr. had never entered a training camp without an established starting quarterback. He spent six seasons in Green Bay playing with Aaron Rodgers before the Packers transitioned to Jordan Love in 2023. Sam Darnold took almost every first-team practice rep when Jones arrived in Minnesota for the 2024 season, and McCarthy was understood to be the top quarterback when camp began in 2025