Can J.J. McCarthy Immediately Win the Starting Job in Minnesota?
Josh Frey
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The Minnesota Vikings entered this offseason needing to find a new starting quarterback after Kirk Cousins left in free agency.
Shortly after Cousins’ departure, Sam Darnold was signed in free agency, and then last weekend, the Vikings traded up to the 10th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft in order to select J.J. McCarthy. This has formed an interesting question in Minnesota: which QB will get the starting nod to begin the season?
Will Sam Darnold or J.J. McCarthy Start Week 1?
There are a number of different ways for this question to be answered. Cody Benjamin from CBS Sports wrote an article this week predicting the outcomes of each QB battle this summer, and for the Vikings, he believes the winner will be the experienced Darnold.
“The Vikings moved quickly to sign Darnold, the former New York Jets prospect, after six-year starter Kirk Cousins left in free agency. But McCarthy is the future, bringing heralded poise and play-action prowess as the No. 10 overall pick. Could he be a seamless fit in Kevin O’Connell’s loaded offense? Sure. At 21, though, he’s got a long runway, whereas Darnold — who’s still got a splashy arm — has starting experience. Odds are McCarthy will take over at some point in 2024, but Minnesota could opt to give Justin Jefferson and Co. a ‘safer’ start.”
Ultimately, it might make the most sense for Darnold to get the starting job, particularly at the beginning of the season.
There is no shortage of examples of young quarterbacks being thrown onto the field too early and derailing the remainder of their careers. In fact, Darnold himself is an example of this after he was selected with the third overall pick by the New York Jets back in 2018.
The USC product was thrown onto the field during his rookie season behind a poor offensive line and alongside a WR group that was led by Robbie Chosen. This wasn’t exactly the greatest situation for success, and Darnold completed 57.7% of his passes for 2865 yards, 17 TDs, and 15 INTs over the course of 13 games.
Things only went downhill from there for Darnold during his stint with the Jets, and since then, he has spent time in Carolina and San Francisco, often as a backup. He started eleven games in 2021 before starting six games in 2022 with the Panthers and just one in 2023 with the 49ers.
The Vikings offer Darnold a chance to resurrect his career. Other than his sole season in San Francisco last year, he is arguably in the best situation of his career in terms of the coaching staff, offensive line, and weapons around him.
In the same vein, though, that argument could be used in favor of McCarthy getting the starting nod right away. If the Vikings have the best situation for a QB to succeed, then why not give their top 10 pick a chance to prove himself right away?
Luckily, the decision doesn’t have to happen right away. Minnesota’s season opener won’t occur for another four months.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Reference.
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Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.