Injured Murray forces Vikes to change plans
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EAGAN, Minn. -- Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kyler Murray will miss at least the next game because of a hamstring strain, coach Kevin O'Connell announced on Thursday.
Carson Wentz will start instead against Buffalo on Monday, with Max Brosmer serving as the backup. Murray's status will be evaluated week to week, O'Connell said, with the hope he can be ready to play by Nov. 15 when the Vikings (6-1) visit Green Bay. Murray is not under consideration for injured reserve, O'Connell said, which would require a minimum four-game absence.
"We do feel like we'd be putting him at risk by possibly turning this into a more significant injury than it already is," O'Connell said.
Murray was forced out of the season opener after 11 snaps because of a concussion that also kept him out of the following game. Wentz threw three touchdown passes in the rally to beat Green Bay and started the rainy victory at Chicago, going 23 for 39 for 276 yards with six sacks and no turnovers while Murray was out.
Wentz, the second overall pick in the 2016 draft, went 2-3 as the starter last year while J.J. McCarthy was sidelined. O'Connell sidestepped a question about whether Wentz could keep the job with a strong performance even after Murray is cleared.
Troubled Rice
DALLAS -- Kansas City Chiefs receiver Rashee Rice has filed for bankruptcy, claiming $3.5 million in debts, most of it connected to civil ligitation involving his high-speed crash in Texas and allegations of assault by a former girlfriend.
Rice is in the final year of a four-year rookie contract with a total value of $6.5 million and a 2026 base salary of $1.6 million.
The former SMU player has 20 catches for 243 yards and two touchdowns this season. Rice had 938 yards receiving and seven touchdowns as a rookie in 2023, when the Chiefs won the Super Bowl.
Belichick up again
Bill Belichick again is among five coaching candidates for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Tom Coughlin, Mike Holmgren, Dan Reeves and Mike Shanahan join Belichick in the Coach category for possible election into the Hall's Class of 2027.
The list was announced Thursday by the Canton, Ohio-based Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Members of the Hall's coaching subcommittee made their selections from an original field of 14 nominees. The subcommittee will select one candidate to be considered when the Hall's selection committee determines a new class of enshrinees in early 2027.
All five reached this stage last year when Belichick advanced in the process but the six-time Super Bowl champion head coach was not elected in his first year of eligibility.
Belichick's snub was criticized intensely around the NFL.
"If he's not a first-ballot Hall of Famer, there's really no coach that should ever be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, which is completely ridiculous because people deserve it. He's incredible," Tom Brady said.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2027 will be announced at "NFL Honors" in Los Angeles in February and enshrined next August in Canton.