Vikings defender has breakout performance after injury riddled rookie season ‘I definitely got my confidence back’
Gabe Murphy is proving himself to be ready for a big role this season
The undrafted free agent market has been a huge factor in the success of the Minnesota Vikings during the tenure of Kevin O’Connell and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, and the next player up appears to be edge rusher Gabriel Murphy.
Last year, the Vikings gave him the most guaranteed money of any UDFA in the 2024 class, and he was primed to make a big impact during the season. Unfortunately, he suffered a knee injury that kept him out of all three preseason games, and he only played in two regular season games, totaling just 35 snaps.
Gabe Murphy has breakout performance in win vs. Texans
After popping on occasion during training camp, it didn’t take long for Murphy to pop during his first preseason game. He got two sacks in the first half, and looked incredibly explosive.
What’s most important about his breakout performance was that he’s mentally in a great spot.
“I definitely got my confidence back, you know, in training camp and stuff like that, and just being able to go out and do it for all the guys, definitely.”
Last season, Murphy’s only extensive playing time was against the Atlanta Falcons, where he played 28 snaps. He wasn’t playing a normal edge rusher role, as Murphy stepped in for Pat Jones II. He was used as a thumper on the interior, crashing on stunts and rushing over guards. Because of his role, Murphy registered just one pressure on 20 pass rush reps. However, he thrived on the edge against tackles on Saturday afternoon.
“I think he had five (QB) hits or whatever it was, and Gabe’s been a guy that has shown up daily at camp, highlighted in front of the team,” said O’Connell. “It feels like [Gabe is] a man on a mission right now, in a lot of ways. And I’m just proud of him, proud of where he’s at in camp right now, and now he’s just got to set his sights on continuing to compete. I mentioned it to you guys how competitive that outside linebacker room is. And it’s because we’re so good at the top with really three starters and JG [Jonathan Greenard], Gink [Andrew Van Ginkel], and Dallas [Turner], and then we feel really, really good about Bo (Richter), Gabe and obviously the two young guys.”
Murphy taking this step forward is huge for the depth in the edge rusher room. Last season, the top four edge rushers all played at least 450 snaps, and Turner played 310 as a rookie. With continued success during training camp, he could be in for a big role this upcoming season.
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