Tag: Matt Corral

QB Jaren Hall set to start Vikings preseason finale against Eagles

The Vikings will rest a ton of their starters against the Eagles and will start Jaren Hall at quarterback.

Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell confirmed to reporters that most of the starters wouldn’t be playing on Saturday against the Eagles in the last preseason game. The move doesn’t come as a surprise, as the Vikings already suffer plenty of injuries.

With Sam Darnold not suiting up, O’Connell said Jaren Hall will get the start for Minnesota at quarterback. O’Connell also plans on getting freshly signed quarterback Matt Corrall some playing time.

With Darnold and Mullens squarely on the roster, Minnesota is likely trying to figure out its quarterback No. 3 role. Hall started a game for the Vikings last season, and so far this preseason, Hall has completed 11-of-21 passes for 150 yards and two touchdowns.

Corrall, a former third-round Panthers pick, was signed by Minnesota after it placed J.J. McCarthy on the IR. Corrall played some against the Browns, but didn’t attempt a pass. Corrall has yet to try a pass in the NFL.

Vikings fans will see who will likely secure that third spot on the quarterback depth chart when Minnesota faces Philadelphia.

Sam Darnold labeled Minnesota Vikings’ “X-factor” heading into 2024

The Minnesota Vikings’ season is going to hinge on the performance of quarterback Sam Darnold, making him the team’s “X-factor” in 2024.

The Minnesota Vikings are in a bit of a pickle regarding their quarterback situation heading into the 2024 season. The plan all along was for former first-round pick Sam Darnold to start the season and for the team to evaluate when to bring in this year’s first-round pick, J.J. McCarthy.

That plan changed dramatically when McCarthy was lost for the season with a knee injury. Now, the Vikings are left with Darnold as the starter and a lot of uncertainty behind him if things don’t pan out for the much-maligned quarterback.

That uncertainty is what has Bleacher Report NFL analyst Kristopher Knox naming Darnold the Minnesota Vikings’ “X-factor” for the 2024 season. Darnold can have one of two seasons: either a redemptive season reminiscent of Baker Mayfield and Geno Smith or a complete collapse, and the Vikings will have to turn elsewhere.

If that second scenario plays out, they’d be turning to either Nick Mullens, who was prolific in his starts last season in relief of injured quarterback Kirk Cousins but was 0-3 in his starts, or Jaren Hall—who was unimpressive in his two starts but went 1-1—or recently signed Matt Corral, who has yet to play a game in the NFL.

The Vikings are in a position where they desperately need Darnold to play like a quarterback who was taken with a top-three pick and not like the quarterback he has played for much of his career.

Fantasy football: Minnesota Vikings QB preview

Will Sam Darnold resurrect his career in Minnesota?

One of the training camps that garnered a lot of interest earlier this month was the Minnesota Vikings. After years with Kirk Cousins at the wheel, Minnesota was breaking new ground. The Vikings held off trading up when quarterbacks were flying off the board until they gave away far less than projected to land J.J. McCarthy with the 10th pick in the draft.

They had their player. The Vikings came up with a Plan B scenario, signing veteran Sam Darnold on a team-friendly, one-year deal similar to the contract Baker Mayfield signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last year. The primary difference was that the Vikings had a dissimilar plan in place. As soon as McCarthy was ready, Darnold was heading to the bench – a “rent don’t own” situation in Minnesota.

That ended in the first preseason game. McCarthy suffered a torn meniscus, and his rookie season is over. Plan B is now Plan A in Minnesota.

Vikings QB Sam Darnold to sit against Browns, Nick Mullens to start

The Vikings have had an interesting week in regards to their quarterbacks, and we got one more wrinkle in it all before the Browns game.

The Minnesota Vikings have had an interesting week regarding their quarterbacks, and we have one more wrinkle before the Cleveland Browns game. With J.J. McCarthy on injured reserve, the team signed Matt Corral to add some depth to the roster.

Now as we get ready for kickoff against the Browns, we get news of Sam Darnold not playing against them.

Chris Hawkey of Minnesota Vikings Radio reported hours before kickoff that Darnold will not be playing against the Browns. Instead, Nick Mullens, who sat out last week against the Las Vegas Raiders, will get the start. He reports that Matt Corral and Jaren Hall will get some reps as the team works to figure out the quarterback position.

Mullens was a healthy scratch last week, and it is expected that Darnold will be the same this week. It is odd, though, that Darnold isn’t being exposed to the Browns” defense anymore after a tough week of practice.

For now, we get to see our first look at Mullens who did flash some good moments last year filling in for Kirk Cousins.

Former Panthers QB Matt Corral getting another chance at NFL

Former Panthers draft pick Matt Corral is back in the NFL.

We love a good underdog story.

As announced on Friday, the Minnesota Vikings have signed former Carolina Panthers quarterback Matt Corral. The 25-year-old now returns to the NFL after a brief stint for the United Football League’s Birmingham Stallions this past spring.

The Ole Miss standout was selected by the Panthers in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft. Carolina, in a deal with the New England Patriots, traded up into the draft’s 94th overall spot to corral Corral under former head coach Matt Rhule.

Unfortunately, he (like Rhule) did not stick around long in Charlotte. Corral sustained a Lisfranc fracture during the preseason of his rookie campaign and would eventually be waived by the Panthers before the start of the 2023 season.

Corral would then be claimed, surely enough, by the Patriots—who would cut ties with him just a few weeks later.

Birmingham came calling in February 2024, right ahead of the UFL’s inaugural season. Corral helped push the Stallions to the league’s title game with an impressive relief appearance in the conference championship round.

With first-round pick J.J. McCarthy having been placed on the season-ending injured reserve due to a knee injury, Corral rejoins another former Panthers passer in Sam Darnold to help patch up Minnesota’s quarterback room.

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Vikings place J.J. McCarthy on IR, sign former third-round pick

The Minnesota Vikings placed J.J. McCarthy on the Injured Reserve list and signed a former third-round pick.

The Minnesota Vikings officially placed rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy on the Injured Reserve, ending his season after one preseason game. The former 10th overall pick will get his next shot in 2025 after rehabbing a torn meniscus in his knee.

With McCarthy’s injury, the Vikings also announced they signed former third-round pick Matt Corral. The Carolina Panthers drafted Corral in the 2022 NFL Draft, but he never saw any NFL action. He spent time with the New England Patriots in 2023.

Most recently, Corral played for the UFL’s 2024 Champion Birmingham Stallions, going 3-0 in his starts and completing 36 of 62 passes for 494 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

With McCarthy being injured, Sam Darnold is the unquestioned starter entering Week 1 against the New York Giants. Nick Mullens figures to back him up, with both Jaren Hall and Matt Corral vying for a roster spot.

Former Panthers QB Matt Corral an unlikely hero in shocking UFL Conference Championship win

A heroic relief appearance by former Panthers QB Matt Corral has the Birmingham Stallions vying for a third straight championship.

The Birmingham Stallions are on the doorstep of a third straight title—and it’s thanks, in part, to a very unlikely hero.

Former Carolina Panthers third-round draft pick Matt Corral went from backup quarterback to the man of the hour in Saturday’s United Football League Conference Championship game. The 25-year-old was called on to replace Adrian Martinez, the league’s likely Most Valuable Player, to complete a furious comeback en route to a 31-18 win.

Once down 15 points to the Michigan Panthers, the Stallions turned to Corral while facing an 18-12 deficit. After throwing an interception on just the second throw of his relief appearance, he finished having completed nine of his 11 throws for 120 yards and two touchdowns.

His first touchdown pass would serve as the go-ahead score, as Corral found wide receiver Amari Rodgers for a 7-yard connection to take a 24-18 lead. He’d later push the advantage to 13 points after a 15-yard touchdown toss to running back Ricky Person Jr.

 

 

The Stallions, who captured United States Football League titles in 2022 and 2023, will face the winner of Sunday’s matchup between the St. Louis Battlehawks and San Antonio Brahamas for the UFL’s inaugural crown.

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Matt Corral rallies Stallions into UFL Championship Game

Matt Corral rallied the Birmingham Stallions into the first UFL Championship Game on June 16

The Birmingham Stallions scored 28 straight points on Saturday to vanquish the Michigan Panthers, 31-18, in the USFL Conference Championship game.

The victory moves the Stallions into their third straight title game. They won a pair of USFL championships and now will face the winner of Sunday’s San Antonio Brahmas-St. Louis Battlehawks clash in the UFL championship.

The victory was not easy. Birmingham fell behind 18-3 and starting quarterback Adrian Martinez was having an off-day.

Coach Skip Holtz inserted Matt Corral and everything changed in the Stallions’ favor.

Corral, an Ole Miss star and Carolina Panthers draft pick, was 9-of-11 for 120 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the comeback.

Former Panthers QB Matt Corral leads Stallions to win in UFL’s inaugural game

Matt Corral battled through his UFL debut and led the Stallions to a 27-14 win over the Renegades.

Matt Corral’s second chance started off with a good first step.

On Saturday afternoon, the former Carolina Panthers quarterback led the Birmingham Stallions to a 27-14 victory over the Arlington Renegades. He completed 12 of his 21 passing attempts for 201 yards, one score and one interception in the United Football League’s inaugural game.

The highlight of Corral’s feel-good afternoon came right before the half, when he found receiver Deon Cain for an absolute beauty of a 39-yard touchdown throw. Their long-distance connection, along with a successful two-point try on a (much shorter) pass from Corral to running back Ricky Person Jr., knotted the game at 11 apiece with just three seconds remaining in the second quarter.

Carolina traded up to draft Corral in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft. The Ole Miss star and 94th overall pick, however, struggled to stick on with the Panthers—who ended up waiving him this past August.

He was subsequently picked up by the New England Patriots, but did not last long there either.

So hopefully, this new life proves to be a much more fruitful one for the 25-year-old passer.

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Former Panthers QB Matt Corral throws beautiful 39-yard TD in UFL debut

Matt Corral has himself a highlight in the UFL’s 2024 opener.

Matt Corral already has himself a highlight in the United Football League.

The former Carolina Panthers quarterback received the starting nod for the UFL’s 2024 regular-season opener on Saturday afternoon. Now a Birmingham Stallions quarterback, Corral was able to chalk up his team’s first touchdown of the spring on this beauty of a pass . . .

When that pigskin came down, it found the hands of wide receiver Deon Cain for a 39-yard visit to the end zone. The score, along with a successful two-point conversion from Corral to running back Ricky Person Jr., pulled the Stallions even with the host Arlington Renegades right before the end of the first half.

Corral began his pro career as a third-round pick of the Panthers back in 2022. He’d sustain a Lisfranc injury during his just second preseason outing, which forced him to miss what would have been his rookie campaign.

Carolina waived Corral this past August.

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