J.J. McCarthy Was in Attendance
Things must be going reasonably well for J.J. McCarthy, the No. 10 pick from the 2024 NFL Draft who is working on recovering from his torn meniscus.
Prior to the Lions game, the young passer was spotted. In fact, multiple beat writers made note of his presence. Ben Goessling of The Star Tribune passed along a brief clip of him playing catch, explaining, “J.J. McCarthy playing a little sideline catch at U.S. Bank Stadium.” Not to be outdone, Alec Lewis of The Athletic passed along an update: “J.J. McCarthy is in the building today at U.S. Bank Stadium, standing on the field, watching his guys. First time for everything.”
J.J. McCarthy and U.S. Bank Stadium in Week 7
Safe to say that there was at least a bit of optimism about the McCarthy pick during the offseason. The preseason may have intensified those feelings.
After all, the 21-year-old coming out of Michigan put on a clinic in his debut NFL game, even if it was just a preseason tilt. An interception aside, McCarthy appeared poised and in command. His passes had good zip and he commonly put the football in a good spot.
McCarthy finished off his day having gone 11/17 for 188 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. He even added a pair of runs for 18 yards. Not bad, eh?
After the game, Kevin O’Connell made note of what seemed to be a minor injury that would prove to be anything but minor. In a progression that inspires memories of Danielle Hunter’s infamous neck tweak, McCarthy actually tore his meniscus, requiring surgery and ending his season in the process.
Any QB controversy was squashed in an instant. Sam Darnold would be the uncontested starter and Nick Mullens would hop up into the QB2 slot.
So far, things have been going reasonably well for Darnold. The journeyman passer isn’t operating at an elite level but he is playing rock-solid football. The QB1 is completing 66.5% of his passes (12th in the NFL) for 1,370 yards (17th in the NFL), 12 touchdowns (t-5th in the NFL), and 5 interceptions (t-13th in the NFL). His 104.0 passer rating comes in at an impressive 7th in the NFL.
Add it all together and Darnold isn’t fairing too poorly at quarterback. Inserting Darnold into this loaded offense really has done a lot for his game, as any number of people suggested in the months leading up to the season.
The upside (and excitement) for seeing J.J. McCarthy is simply that it’s a reminder of what’s in store for the Vikings. Trading up for a top-ten passer isn’t the move of a team that feels uncertain about the young quarterback. On the contrary, there’s full belief in McCarthy developing into the QB solution for the next decade (or more).
Unless Darnold leads the Vikings deep into the postseason, J.J. McCarthy is going to step into the top job in 2025.
Next up for the 5-1 Vikings is a date with the 2-4 Rams on Thursday Night Football. Pulling off the win feels important given the recent loss to the Lions.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. CT.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this piece.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.
