The Vikings were in full pads for the second time in three days during Wednesday’s training camp practice at TCO Performance Center. The longest practice of camp so far — it was 14 periods total and 11 with three water breaks built in — ended with 11-on-11 red-zone and two-minute drills. Here’s how Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy fared.
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Who went first? McCarthy got the first period in a 7-on-7 session, completing three of six passes while working with the first team. Murray followed by going 3-for-6, getting off to a rough start by having a pass for Tai Felton almost picked by Theo Jackson and then throwing behind Josh Oliver on a pass over the middle. Murray then hit Jauan Jennings in stride on a beautiful deep ball for a touchdown over Jackson.
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Murray’s snap count: 31 (25 in 11-on-11, six in 7-on-7). Murray has taken 146 snaps in camp.
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McCarthy’s snap count: 32 (26 in 11-on-11, six in 7-on-7). McCarthy has taken 136 snaps in camp.
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Murray’s unofficial passing stats: 14-for-21, including 11-for-15 in 11-on-11 and 3-for-6 in 7-on-7. For the camp, Murray is 65-for-100, including 49-for-68 in 11-on-11 and 16-for-32 in 7-on-7.
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McCarthy’s unofficial passing stats: 13-for-20, including 10-for-14 in 11-on-11 and 3-for-6 in 7-on-7. For the camp, McCarthy is 58-for-89, including 38-for-57 in team and 20-for-32 in 7-on-7.
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Under center vs. shotgun: Murray has spent his career playing out of the pistol or shotgun formation, which isn’t how O’Connell usually runs his offense. On Wednesday, Murray took 18 of his 25 snaps out of shotgun in team drills. McCarthy took 18 of his 26 snaps out of shotgun.
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Work with the first-team offense: Murray got 24 snaps with the first-team offense, including 7-on-7 work, and seven with the second team. McCarthy got 13 snaps with the first team and 19 with the second team. Murray faced the first-team defense on 23 snaps, and McCarthy faced the first team for 14 snaps.
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Murray’s day: Two days after Murray and McCarthy both looked terrible in the 2-minute drill, Murray led a four-play touchdown drive that began with 1 minute, 10 seconds on the clock and the offense down by a point. After completing passes to the sideline for T.J. Hockenson and Justin Jefferson, Murray scrambled out of bounds for a first down. Of course, he can’t be hit, but the key was on all three plays Murray got the clock stopped. Murray then threw a deep pass for Jefferson that the Pro Bowl wide receiver was able to catch despite being double covered. Jefferson then ran into the end zone. Murray’s decision-making was impressive and his veteran savvy showed as he worked with the first-team offense against the top defense. Murray also connected with Felton on a deep touchdown pass over the middle in the first 11-on-11 drill. Felton beat Rodgers and Josh Metellus on the play.
