J.J. McCarthy Garners Respect of the Locker Room

When a quarterback is drafted in the first round, everyone knows it will eventually be his team. The Minnesota Vikings are no different, as their tenth overall pick, J.J. McCarthy, will take the reins at some point; the remaining question is when. One positive note is that his teammates continue to praise him.
J.J. McCarthy Has Earned Locker Room’s Respect

The latest Viking to applaud the rookie was tight end T.J. Hockenson on the Bussin’ with the Boys podcast. Hockenson is still recovering from his nasty knee injury that included a torn ACL and a torn MCL.
Asked about his future passer, the former eighth-overall pick said: “He’s been incredible. He’s grinding in the film room. He’s grinding in the classroom. He’s a baller on the field, obviously,” Hockenson claimed on Tuesday. “But to have a guy, especially a rookie, come into a facility and to the league, you usually need to shut your mouth and go to work, and that’s exactly what he did. He’s earned the respect of a lot of guys in there.”
McCarthy’s work ethic and general mindset have been on the positive side of his scouting report. The national champion shines with a mature personality and a mentality that pushes him to do whatever is necessary to pull off victories. Only one game in his college career ended with his Michigan team losing, and he promised the fans a championship after that contest. One year later, he and his teammates indeed delivered that title.

The 21-year-old must unseat veteran Sam Darnold to draw starts in the NFL.
Hockenson continued: “Obviously, we have Sam Darnold, who’s a baller and plays the game at a really high level, so it’ll be interesting what happens with those two. I’m excited that J.J.’s on our team. Like I said, he’s a leader. He did that in Michigan, and I’m sure that will carry over to the league just as well.”
The remark that Darnold plays the game at a very high level should be taken with a grain of salt, considering the signal-caller’s track record in the league. Of course, there’s a chance he can turn his career around like Baker Mayfield and Geno Smith just did, but he must prove it on the field.
Hockenson is the latest to praise McCarthy. Safety Josh Metellus said two weeks ago: “He’s going to figure it out because he always does, and I think he’s going to be really good for the team. He brings good energy, and you can tell he’s a leader by nature, so I think he’ll be really good for the locker room.”
Metellus and McCarthy share an alma mater, as both attended Michigan.

Fellow defender and newly acquired linebacker Blake Cashman declared: “Yeah, 21 years old but a great young man. He’s a leader. He is eager to learn. A lot of young guys, sometimes they can come in, be a little timid or shy,” Cashman said. “But he’s walking around the locker room, big smile on his face, shaking hands, getting to know everybody.”
Minnesota native Cashman saw first-hand the difference between a wonderful and a struggling first-year player. Just last year, he was around C.J. Stroud in Houston, and earlier in his career, Zach Wilson was his QB with the Jets.
In addition to his personality traits, Cashman was impressed by the passer’s throwing skills: “I didn’t know much about his game before. Winning followed him at Michigan, but I didn’t realize how much heat he can put on the ball. He’s got a great long ball and even those tight windows at the next level, he can zip the ball past linebackers or safeties’ heads and squeeze it in those tight windows. That’s very promising to see and he’s going to be a great player for a long time. I can’t wait to just continue to see his growth and not only his development as a quarterback with his skills but also become an even smarter player.”

That makes three of his teammates publicly state their excitement about McCarthy’s presence in the building.
Training camp is right around the corner, and the rookie can prove that he belongs on the field and is ready to lead the organization into a new era. If he can’t do that yet, Darnold will take the snaps until he is prepared.
His first chance to see regular season action will be on September 8 when the Vikes travel to New York to face the Giants. A first preseason matchup will be on August 10 against the Las Vegas Raiders.

There Will Be Another Viking in the Ring of Honor
Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt