Carson Wentz Could Create Unexpected Vikings QB Conversation

Carson Wentz will make the 100th regular-season start of his career Sunday when the Minnesota Vikings visit the Chicago Bears, after coach Kevin O’Connell ruled out Kyler Murray on Friday.

Murray suffered a concussion in the first quarter of Minnesota’s opener against the Green Bay Packers, taking a late hit from safety Javon Bullard at the end of a scramble. He was limited in practice all week before the team made the call. J.J. McCarthy will back up Wentz.

Receiver Jauan Jennings is also out for personal reasons. Right tackle Brian O’Neill is questionable with a knee injury.

Wentz came off the bench last Sunday and completed 12 of 19 passes for 133 yards and three touchdowns. The Vikings scored the final 29 points of a 39-22 win.

Justin Jefferson caught eight passes for 92 yards and two touchdowns from Wentz. The pair also connected on the two-point conversion that gave Minnesota its first lead, 25-22, with 6:37 remaining.

Wentz said Friday that the Green Bay game was the first time as a backup he had been thrust into action that way.

“Got to be ready,” Wentz said. “Got to be locked in. And the way you can be adaptable and stay ready is by mentally locking in. I think for me, the years I’ve been a backup, that was the first time I’ve really been thrust into a game like that. So that was a whole new experience. I think I talked about that a little bit after the game. So that was new to me.”

“But again, I fell back on my preparation,” Wentz continued. “I wasn’t maybe taking the reps during the week, but I go through everything as if I’m the starter. Guys have the same kind of mentality, the same approach and the same kind of regimen as far as preparation, watching film, studying our game plan, all those things, and that paid off last week.”

The Bears opened with 59 points against the Carolina Panthers. Their defense is run by coordinator Dennis Allen, the former head coach of the Saints and Raiders.

Wentz’s last start against Chicago came in 2022 with the Washington Commanders. He completed 10 of 22 passes for 99 yards in a 12-7 win at Soldier Field on Thursday Night Football.

He said the matchup comes down to the line of scrimmage.

“They’re a good team,” Wentz said. “Obviously, they put up a lot of points offensively last week. They do a lot of good things defensively as well. They don’t do a ton of crazy stuff. That’s one thing. This D coordinator has been around for a long time. A lot of respect for him. Gone against him before. They have good players. I think we have good players, too.”

“I’m excited to see the line of scrimmage kind of be where I think it’s won and lost more than anything,” Wentz added. “And so, excited to see that mentality from our guys up front to kind of get after these guys and kind of open up some things down the field.”

Murray won the starting job over McCarthy in training camp after signing a one-year deal. Counting Sunday, he will have missed 13 of his last 14 games, dating to a foot injury with the Arizona Cardinals in Week 5 last season.

Jonathan Jones of The Athletic reported that Murray is expected to clear the concussion protocol next week. The Vikings have given no public indication that his job is in question.

Should Wentz win again, Minnesota would sit at 2-0 with an early edge in the NFC North and a quarterback conversation it did not expect to have.

Kickoff for the Bears’ home opener is set for 1 p.m. ET Sunday at Soldier Field.