Timberwolves – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Could Kyler Murray Have Pack Running in Circles Sunday?

Posted on September 8, 2026September 9, 2026 by David Shama

Kyler Murray makes his debut as Vikings quarterback next Sunday and there’s reason to wonder if he will have the Packers “on the run.” The diminutive but athletic Murray ranks fourth in the NFL among quarterbacks since 2019 with 3,193 rush yards.

The 29-year-old former Cardinals quarterback will face a Packer defense still learning under new coordinator Jonathan Gannon who is Murray’s former head coach in Arizona. There is always a learning curve with a new scheme and leader.

Green Bay will play without superstar pass rusher Micah Parsons whose absence could mean two things benefitting Murray and the Vikings.

First, less pass rushing pressure on Murray—who was much more effective when not harassed last season playing for the Cardinals. When pressured, Murray’s passer rating last season was 65.6, per an article last summer from http://www.si.com/nfl/packers/. From a clean pocket, it was 97.0—a 31.4-point difference (which is considered typical in the NFL).

Second, the absence of Parsons in not being available to chase down the elusive Murray on scrambles or designed runs is significant for a Packer defense that was just okay against rushing last season. And that defense must keep track, too, of pass receiving threats like wide receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, two of the better duos in the NFL.

Daniel House

Local football authority Daniel House, known for his football film breakdown and data driven research, is curious about Murray’s impact on Sunday, too. “By moving the pocket off of play-action, there will be natural scrambling opportunities,” he said in a text. “He is also a threat to scramble when coverage gets locked up downfield.

“I really want to see if there are some designed quarterback runs and run-pass options (RPO) dashed into the Vikings’ game plan. Those elements fit Murray’s game well. Even if Murray only pulls the ball on designed runs a couple of times per game, the defense still has to respect and prepare for it.”

The Vikings have prioritized the run game in the offseason, hiring Frank Smith as assistant head coach to improve what has been a struggling aspect of the offense. That, too, could cause issues for the Packers on Sunday, and contribute to having Murray on the loose as a ball carrier.

“Frank Smith’s impact on the run game is what I’m most fascinated to see this year,” House wrote. “I’m expecting big changes, so it may be challenging for the Packers to know what the Vikings are going to do schematically in Week 1.”

You can follow House on X: https://x.com/DanielHouseMN

Worth Noting

CBS has made Sunday’s game its featured telecast and the on-air headliner crew of Jim Nantz, J.J. Watt and Tracy Wolfson will be at U.S. Bank Stadium.

The Vikings are 1.5 point favorites, per the BetMGM sportsbook.

There were 72 NFL games with a game-winning score in the final five minutes of the fourth quarters or overtimes in 2025. That is second-most in a season all-time. Approximately 70 percent of games were within one score (eight points) at some point of the fourth quarters.

A former front office executive with NFL teams, who text messages with Sports Headliners, is bullish on the Vikings, predicting they will win the NFC North with a 12-5 record. He has the Lions finishing second in the division and making the playoffs as a wildcard, while the third-place Bears and fourth-place Packers miss out on the postseason.

CBS will also bring its lead college football team to town Saturday for the Minnesota-Mississippi State game: Brad Nessler, Charles Davis and Jenny Dell. Nessler is a native of St. Charles, Minnesota.

Gopher head coach P.J. Fleck, starting his 10^th season, said on Monday that State’s Kamario Taylor, who ran for a touchdown and passed for 354 yards in the Bulldogs opening win against ULM, is “one of the best” quarterbacks he’s seen here.

Gracious Matt Limegrover, who was with Jerry Kill’s Gopher staff as offensive line coach and offensive coordinator from 2011-2015, has been an assistant offensive line coach with Fleck since January and has coached at 11 different colleges and universities. Fleck praised how Limegrover and offensive line coach Brian Callahan work together.

When the Gophers need muscle trying to score inside the five-yard line they may miss 6-foot, 215-pound Fame Ijeboi. They certainly miss him for quality depth on the running back roster with freshman Ryan Estrada injured in the opening game last Thursday and out for the season. Ijeboi is now at Purdue and the power runner and Gopher transfer averaged 7.9 yards per carry and scored one touchdown last Friday in his team’s season opening win over Indiana State. He ran 11 times for 87 yards.

That was former Gopher and Nebraska wide receiver Malachi Coleman who caught a touchdown pass for Wisconsin in his team’s opening loss to Notre Dame.

The Badgers have Wisconsin-based Culver’s as their jersey patch sponsor. The Gophers have yet to announce a deal on the new innovation that adds revenues to college athletic departments.

Former Gopher quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis, who played his last two seasons of college football at Rutgers, is a rookie on the Commanders 53-man roster where his teammates include ex-Viking WR Stefon Diggs.

A couple of takes after the first weekend of Big Ten football: Rutgers is the worst team after a feeble loss to UMass, defending conference and national champ Indiana could again be the best in the league and UCLA coach Bob Chesney might be the second coming of Curt Cignetti.

Northing announced yet, but it seems like a logical move for the Timberwolves to pick up 38-year-old and 18-year NBA veteran power forward Kevin Love. He could be a terrific addition on the court and off.

Love is among the elite outlet passers in league history and can stretch the defense with his three-point shooting range. His passing would add a valued element to the built-to-run Wolves offense.

In the locker room the Wolves no longer have the veteran presence of three players from last season. Gone are Mike Conley, Joe Ingles and Kyle Anderson.

As of yesterday morning, the Twins’ remaining opponents had a combined winning percentage of .463, the second-lowest strength of schedule in baseball. The Twins, 68-76, have 18 games remaining on the schedule.

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Athletic QB ‘Freak’ Awaits U Saturday in ‘Barometer Game’

Posted on September 6, 2026September 6, 2026 by David Shama

The Golden Gophers will need to contain multiple quarterbacks this season who not only can scramble from the pocket but also excel on designed runs. None may be more dangerous than Kamario Taylor from Mississippi State who Minnesota plays Saturday at Huntington Bank Stadium.

The sophomore Mississippi native ran untouched for a 26-yard touchdown last night in his team’s 62-13 season opening win over ULM. Bigger news was his passing improvement that paid off with four touchdown throws. He showed development in his progressions while passing for 354 yards.

Taylor made two starts last season and played in 11 games during his freshman year. The 6-4, 230-pound athletic freak was third on the team in rushing yards with 458 on just 82 carries while leading the team in touchdown runs with eight. He threw 629 yards and five touchdowns, with one interception on 43-of-77 passing.

The Bulldogs, 5-8 last season, aren’t considered a title favorite in the mighty SEC but could be a dark horse spoiler, partly because of their quarterback. An opposing SEC coach, quoted by Athlon Sports in its college football preview, referred to Taylor as a “phenom.”

“…He can do a lot of things for them this year, not only with his arm, but also with his feet. He can keep plays alive, which turn into big plays.”

Legendary former Alabama coach Nick Saban said this at the SEC media gathering this summer: “…This guy could be the truth and the light now. He is really, really good.”

In three of the next four games Minnesota defensive coordinator Danny Collins must deal with quarterbacks who are formidable runners. On September 26 in Seattle Minnesota will see electric quarterback Demond Williams and then on October 3 faces Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood who is expected to be a frequent runner in new coach Kyle Whittingham’s system. The Gophers end the season at Wisconsin where quarterback Colton Joseph figures to be among the Badgers primary ball carriers.

Collins said in training camp the Gophers are “ready” for the challenges presented by scrambling and run by design quarterbacks. The offseason planning started last winter and continued in the spring and summer. Collins talked about having a “menu” of options depending on what the offense presents. Anticipating a designed run, for example, might prompt an additional safety on the field.

The planning gets its first test Saturday in a “barometer game” for the Gophers who are 1-0 like the Bulldogs. The early wagering lines have the Gophers as slight favorites, a couple of points.

After a final nonconference game September 19 at home with Akron, the Gophers face a second “barometer game” against a promising Washington team that will be favored. If Minnesota could enter the Michigan game 4-0 the Bank would be rocking in the battle for the Little Brown Jug.

Worth Noting

The NFL season starts Wednesday night in Seattle where the Seahawks and Patriots play in a rematch from last February’s Super Bowl. Minneapolis-based attorney, sports historian, and Sports Headliners advertiser Marshall Tanick noted in an email that the Vikings and Chiefs opened the 1970 season at Met Stadium after playing against each other in Super Bowl IV in January of that year.

That was an NFL first, matching the Super Bowl teams in the next season opener, and something that has happened only twice (Carolina at Denver in 2016) going into Wednesday’s game.

The Vikings lost 23-7 in the Super Bowl but earned redemption in a 27-10 September win. Chiefs coach Hank Stram had mocked the Vikings during the Super Bowl, so the victory felt like extra revenge for Minnesotans.

Via team voting the Vikings selected eight captains for the coming season:

Offense: Justin Jefferson, Aaron Jones, Sr., Kyler Murray, Brian O’Neill.

Defense: Blake Cashman, Joshua Metellus, Andrew Van Ginkel.

Special Teams: Andrew DePaola.

While Forbes isn’t out yet with its annual valuation of NFL teams, Sportico has done so. The Vikings rank No.23 in the 32-team money machine league. Their valuation is $8.26 billion and ranks ahead of the Packers at No. 24 and Lions at No. 27. Sportico figures the Vikings are worth 32 percent more than last year. https://www.sportico.com/feature/nfl-team-values-ranking-list-1234684165/

The Cowboys at $15.5 billion top Sportico’s valuations. That figure tops the valuation of any other American pro sports franchise.

Gophers hoops player Cade Tyson, image by David Shama — Cade Tyson

No final litigation word yet as to whether players seeking a fifth year of NCAA eligibility like Cade Tyson from Gophers basketball will be eligible this fall and winter. But, if so, Tyson will need to choose a team, and he likely can command seven figures. And $2 million might be the ceiling.

Tyson’s presence might be worth more than a couple of extra wins to Minnesota next season.

Former Gophers point guard Marcus Carr, who recently played professionally in Germany, is a member of the Canadian Senior Men’s National Team this summer and is averaging 16.2 points and eight assists in the FIBA Basketball World Cup Qualifiers.

Former Timberwolves point guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker, now with the Hawks, is averaging 15.3 points and 5.3 assists per game for Canada.

It’s stunning to view the late season batting averages of MLB players. There are only eight players hitting over .300, with former Twin Luis Arraez leading at .318. The Twins Luke Keaschall is 30th in the majors at .276.

Arraez, who won the AL batting crown in 2022 with Minnesota hitting .316, could win his fourth batting title in the majors. Now with the Phillies, that would be four with four different teams.

The average MLB batter is hitting .244, per A.I. That reminds baseball historians of 1968, The Year of the Pitcher when the average reportedly was .237.

The dismal hitting in 2026 is a combination of factors including the swing for the fences approach and minimizing bat contact as a priority (Arraez is the opposite). Also, pitching supremacy is fueled by powerful arms, technology (analytics and more), improved body mechanics, and the proliferation of quality pitching available from beginning to end each game.

For those who want to follow the teams in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, the MIAC Sports Network offers streaming annually of more than 1,000 contests. The network app is free.

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Vikings Cutting QB J.J. McCarthy Today? Fuhgeddaboudit

Posted on August 30, 2026August 30, 2026 by David Shama

Enjoy a Sunday notes column.

NFL rosters must be reduced to 53 men tonight (Sunday) by 5 p.m. Minneapolis time. Any speculation the Vikings will cut disappointing third year quarterback J.J. McCarthy from their roster is ludicrous.

McCarthy, who has won six regular-season games as the team’s starter and lost the No. 1 job to Kyler Murray in training camp this summer, could be traded over the weekend or later. Dismiss any speculation, though, the Vikings will give him up for a late round future draft choice, or cut him for the roster with nothing in return.

J.J. McCarthy, Vikings QB, image by David Shama — J.J. McCarthy

The likely scenario is the Vikings won’t receive trade offers that entice them, and it makes sense that decision makers Kevin O’Connell (head coach) and Nolan Teasley (general manager) aren’t giving up so soon on Minnesota’s 2024 first round draft choice. Even if the 23-year-old is going to be replaced for now by Carson Wentz as backup quarterback, it doesn’t mean McCarthy can’t follow a path where he emerges as at least a serviceable NFL starter.

Other predictions about today’s cutdown include a nod here to rookie Brett Thorson winning the punting job from veteran Johnny Hekker, and linebacker Ivan Pace and offensive tackle Walter Rouse, both veterans, being cut. Bubble RB Zavier Scott makes the team but second-year former Golden Gopher QB Max Brosmer does not.

It wouldn’t be surprising at all to see the Vikings add a player or two from the Seahawks roster after they make their cuts, partly because Teasley, as a former Seattle executive, worked for the organization for 13 seasons.

Promising Vikings rookie defensive lineman Domonique Orange has potential to have one of the better nicknames in franchise history. Known as “Big Citrus,” he is listed by the team at 6-2 and 322 pounds. If he becomes a mainstay his handle can be up there with “Harry the Hitman” (Harrison Smith), “All Day” Adrian Peterson, Randy “The Freak” Moss, and “Benchwarmer” Bob Lurtsema.

BTW, a source said word inside the Vikings organization is that it’s “highly doubtful” the 37-year-old Smith decides to play another season.

Former Twins general manager Thad Levine talks weekly with prominent sports newsmakers on his podcast Rosters to Rings. It’s the kind of in-depth content you’d expect from the cerebral Levine.

The presumptive sale of the Los Angeles Lakers for $12.5 billion this summer is a startling contrast to the historical purchase prices of the NBA franchise, per A.I. The Detroit Gems were purchased for $15,000 and moved to Minneapolis in 1947. Bob Short bought the club for $150,000 in 1957, moved the team to L.A. in 1960 and sold it for about $5 million in 1965.

With the addition of 23-year-old power forward Jonathan Kuminga, the Timberwolves now have a starting lineup that averages a youthful 26.4 years. Point guard LaMelo Ball, shooting guard Anthony Edwards and small forward Jaden McDaniels are all 25, and center Rudy Gobert is 34. Remove Gobert, and the Wolves have a foursome averaging 24.5 years.

With that youth, the Wolves may be positioned for a long time to compete against two other dominant and youthful teams in the Spurs and Thunder. Those franchises are wagering favorites to win the 2027 NBA title with the Wolves a top 10 bet.

Possibility that the NHL will add an expansion team in Texas (Houston or Austin) could prompt speculation the new team will play in the Western Conference’s Central Division and allow the Wild to join a less competitive division. Minnesota might jump at the chance to escape the Avalanche and Stars.

A big storyline to follow when the Wild heads into training camp and preseason next month will be who establishes himself as the team’s No. 1 goalie. Filip Gustavsson, 28, has the edge in experience but the NHL Network recently gave Jesper Wallstedt, 23, the No. 9 spot on its list of top 10 league goalies.

The Avalanche’s Cale Makar’s new contract extension is expected to prompt a new deal for the Wild’s Quinn Hughes. It’s believed the Hughes camp has been waiting for the Makar signing to set the market for defensemen as they are two of the best in the world.

Makar’s new compensation is reportedly at $20. 4 million in annual average value. Hughes may become the Wild’s highest compensated player, exceeding the $17 million annual average value reported deal of teammate Kirill Kaprizov.

Fordy Leipold, son of Craig Leipold, is director of marketing of his dad’s new Minnesota Forge pro volleyball team based in St. Paul.

New gameday food items will be available at Huntington Bank Stadium for Golden Gophers football and include Papa Pete’s Mini Donuts (Section 121), Cold Stone Creamery (Sections 131, 121), Sushi Flip Pops (Section 143), Salads & Sides (Section 127) and Original Fried Chicken Tenders in the West Plaza. Mini Sloppy Joe’s will be featured at the Game Day Cart (Section 143).

New Spam-inspired offerings include Spam Corn Dogs at Curds & Cakes (Section 123), the Spam Stadium Dog at the Sizzle Stand (Section 135) and Spam Fries in Club Cambria. Dominos Pizza, BBQ Cabin, Maui Wowi, Minnesota’s Original Brat Dog, The Lotus Vietnamese and Parlour Burger locations return this season. Proceeds from Parlour Burger benefit Dinkytown Athletes.

Gophers starting center Ashton Beers attended a media gathering for food sampling at the stadium. Asked what’s the best food option in small town Slinger, Wisconsin, he replied: “Culver’s.”

Linemate Tony Nelson, the right guard who was raised on a family farm near Tracy, got married recently to Amber Findlay.

University of Minnesota athletics lost two extraordinary boosters with the deaths this summer of Kay McReavy and Lee Sundet, both of whom passed away in their 90s. Condolences to friends and family.

Probably safe to say there will be more than a little grumbling among Gopher football fans that want to watch the opener in their homes Thursday night against Eastern Illinois; they need the Peacock platform.

The Gophers are the only Big Ten football program returning their head coach, offensive and defensive coordinators, and starting quarterback.

Pickle ball sources say former Gopher basketball player Andre Hollins, 2011-2015, is outstanding at the game.

No details announced yet, but big names are expected for signings at the Minnesota Card Show September 17-20 at the St. Paul RiverCentre. Over 600 vendor tables will feature sports cards and other memorabilia.

Quarterback Anthony Policare, the first- year starter who threw the winning touchdown pass in the last minute of the St. Thomas 15-9 season opening win against Winona State last week, is a transfer from Buffalo University where he spent three years.

A certain online sports columnist celebrates 20 years this month!

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