There's a key twist to Kyler Murray's Vikings contract

Kyler Murray's signing with the Minnesota Vikings has the potential to be one of the biggest moves of this NFL offseason if it works out.

The Vikings already had one of the most talented rosters in football, but they didn't have a quarterback they felt good about, not after J.J. McCarthy's rough 2025 season.

Now they've got a former No. 1 overall pick to play QB, a guy who has played a lot of good football in his NFL career.

Because the Arizona Cardinals are paying Murray a lot of money to not play for them this season, the Vikings even got him on a veteran's minimum contract.

There's just one thing about the contract that stands out, reported by ESPN's Dan Graziano in a new article this week: There's a clause that impacts who Murray plays for next season.

The contract Murray signed doesn't allow him to be given the franchise tag or transition tag next offseason, Graziano writes.

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That prevents the Vikings from keeping Murray without first letting him get to the open market.

"So, if Murray plays great football for the Vikings and they want to re-sign him, they could have competition from other teams," writes Graziano.

This obviously isn't something Minnesota would've wanted in the contract, so clearly Murray asked for it and the Vikings granted it. They wanted their QB for this season, and they likely feel they have the goods to convince Murray to re-sign if this year goes well.

Graziano compared Murray's contract to that of Tua Tagovailoa with the Atlanta Falcons -- Tua's deal doesn't have this equivalent cause.

Murray has the potential in high demand next offseason if he can put together a special campaign in Minnesota. If that happens, the Vikings will have to bid against everyone else.

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