EAGAN, Minn. — Kyler Murray is excited to show what he can do Sunday.

Minnesota's starting quarterback didn't have the debut he or anyone anticipated following a first-pass interception and a concussion — his first since college — suffered during a scramble on just his 11^th Vikings snap.

But after clearing the protocol, he's ready to resume his role under center for a 2-0 club.

"Yeah, you couldn't draw it up any worse probably," Murray said of his short-lived outing in Week 1 at Green Bay, which led to Carson Wentz taking over. "Unfortunate chain of events, and I didn't get to turn it around. I felt great that day. Obviously, you have the turnover and then you get knocked out of the game, but I trust in God. I trust everything happens for a reason. I'm blessed [and] I'm healthy. I'm excited about not only this week, but the future.

"Honestly, I just felt like I didn't even get to get in the game. That's what it felt like. It was started and it was over," he added. "But again, it is what it is. I get another opportunity and that's all that matters this week. Go out here, execute, try to leave Tampa Bay with a win."

Murray shouted out Wentz for holding down the fort and doing a great job and tipped his cap to the unit that's caused a couple of division rivals to buckle under immense pressure.

"Can't say enough about the defense," Murray said. "The way they're playing — tenacity, togetherness — all of it. It's beautiful to watch a group of guys go out there and do that."

Murray missed more than a handful of games in his first seven seasons but not often because of the contact he absorbed. He prides himself on avoiding unnecessary hits.

"I'd like to think I'm one of the least-hit quarterbacks in the league, as far as just protecting myself, getting the ball out and stuff like that, so that's new for me to have to go through that type of situation," Murray said, chalking up the play as an awkward instance that resulted from the tackling angle. "[Lukas] Van Ness was behind me, and you're moving fast. You charge it to the game. I don't judge anybody over there (on the Packers) for anything that happened."

The Week 3 matchup for Murray has some fun storylines, including going against his college buddy Baker Mayfield, who won the Heisman Trophy as Oklahoma's quarterback and was selected No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft before Murray achieved both feats the next year.

They have a close relationship formed through competition during their Sooners days, and so far, Murray holds bragging rights over him as a pro, beating Mayfield twice when he was the Browns QB (2019 and 2021) and once when he was at the controls for Carolina (2022). In those contests, Murray has produced a 110.1 passer rating with eight total touchdowns.

He knows what Mayfield can do, though, and he's not taking the 0-2 Bucs lightly, either.

"One thing you learn about playing in this league [is] any given Sunday you can get beat," Murray reminded. "I know what's happened in the past, but I don't judge any defense or anything by what happened the week before. We've got to go out there and do it ourselves."

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