The QB Competition Is Closer than You Think According to Vikings’ Safety
Kirk Cousins handled the QB duties in the last six seasons but left in free agency to join the Atlanta Falcons. The Minnesota Vikings, meanwhile, will either start Sam Darnold or J.J. McCarthy in Week 1 of the 2024 campaign. Head coach Kevin O’Connell must make the right decision for that contest, but his choice will impact the organization’s future.
The QB Competition Is Closer than You Think According to Vikings’ Safety
Most folks view Darnold as the clear favorite to open the season as the QB1. “That’s why he was signed,” they understandably claim. Rookie McCarthy, though, shouldn’t be ruled out. His teammate Camryn Bynum appeared on the NFL Network’s show The Insiders and talked about the two potential leaders.
Having the two new quarterbacks, it’s fun being able to play against them and see what they bring to the table. They’re both looking really good. It’s exciting to see them compete. They’re both looking good, so I can’t put one over the other. I just say they both look ready. Whatever coaches decide, I trust them and their decision.
Camryn Bynum
The remark from the fourth-year player is diplomatic, which is allowable. Still, he could’ve said that he and the team trusted Darnold to lead the operation but chose to include McCarthy and emphasize the competition.
Of course, the quarterback position is the most important in the sport. The Vikings will go as far as a passer takes them, regardless of who’s starting. Teams without a capable starter under center don’t compete for Super Bowls in the NFL.
That is what Bynum strives for. He confidently declared a ring as the goal for the 2024 Vikings.
I expect the Super Bowl. Everybody says that, and everybody should say that, but you look at the guys on the team, the locker room, all the experience that we have; look at how much depth we have, especially on the defense. We have so many guys; it’s almost weird looking around because you’re (thinking) how are we all going to get on the field because there’s so many ballers.
You look at the offense; there’s a baller at every position across the board. That’s why I’m confident when I say I expect us to be a Super Bowl team. Our preparation has to tell it all. Every team says that every year, but we have to make it real.
Those ballers on offense might include the signal-callers, although media outlets are more skeptical, and the team’s projected win total of seven is surely impacted by the low expectations at the crucial spot.
Darnold once was a highly-regarded QB prospect in college. His arm talent is still there, but so is his recklessness with the football, leading to too many interceptions. That tendency to turn the ball over cost him the job with the New York Jets, who invested the third overall pick to acquire him in 2018. Later, the Carolina Panthers moved on after two seasons.
Those two organizations are known for their dysfunction, and their lack of weapons and useful coaching surely hurt his development. Last season, Darnold spent the year in San Francisco, and sitting a season behind starter Brock Purdy with limited exposure on gameday might have helped him transform his game to the next level. The Vikings hope for that improvement and the additional boost because of the phenomenal weapons he can throw to in Kevin O’Connell’s offense.
McCarthy, meanwhile, comes with a resume full of trophies in his high school and college career. Losing isn’t something he does regularly. However, to some extent, it’s fair to say that he wasn’t the driving force behind Michigan’s success, although he played his best in crucial moments.
He has the arm talent and the mobility to become Minnesota’s long-term solution. Still, the 21-year-old must refine his game and work on some fundamentals. That is a common process for rookies.
The good news is that the Vikings can offer that time in a season in which the expectations are quite low. If he’s as ready as Bynum implied, he might see the field, but the coaches could still opt to play it safe with their tenth overall pick. If he isn’t ready, Darnold will guide the Vikes, and McCarthy can do what Darnold couldn’t do early in his career: develop behind closed doors without the extra stress of competing on Sundays.
During OTAs, O’Connell emphasized that the veteran is currently at the top of the depth chart: “We haven’t had to put out a depth chart or anything like that, but I would say Sam would be the guy I would look to based on the spring he’s had and, really, where he’s at in his career and his quarterback journey.”
There will be a competition, and if McCarthy is the real deal, it can’t be ruled out that he will get the nod in Week 1. It would be an upset, though. If he is still a work in progress, Darnold will start. The first contest will be on September 8, when the Vikings travel to MetLife Stadium to meet the New York Giants.
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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