Kevin O’Connell Talks J.J. McCarthy … Alongside a Dreaded Label
Game manager. In the world of NFL football, the descriptor is often viewed as an insult, the antithesis of what one desires in the QB1 spot.
Recently, Kevin O’Connell took some time to chat with the media alongside Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. While doing so, O’Connell reflected on the necessity of a quarterback managing the game well, doing so in a manner that leads to wins. O’Connell’s point — if I’m understanding the coach correctly — is that he wants his youthful passer to understand what a specific situation demands and adjust the approach accordingly.
Kevin O’Connell, J.J. McCarthy, & A Game Manager at QB1
Ask a cynic and the answer will be clear: Kirk Cousins was a mere game manager.
The issue is that he was payed as though he had that intangible “it-factor,” an ability to put a team on his shoulders in the huge moments by pushing them toward victory. Cousins earned fully guaranteed cash for his half-dozen seasons as a Viking and only ended up with a single postseason win. No doubt, his time in Minnesota will be remembered with (at best) a mixture of disappointment and fondness.
Are things going to be different with Mr. McCarthy? At least three things point toward that being the case. First, there’s his history as a college national champion. Second, there’s the reality of his bargain contract and roster reinforcements that flow therefrom. Third, teammates are quick to point toward his leadership, an intangible aura that makes players want to follow him.
Still, there’s the thoughts from Kevin O’Connell. Can being a game manager be a good thing, especially when someone is chosen at No. 10 overall?
Check out some of what the head coach had to say: “I do think that there’s a layer now where you start having real conversations about managing situations. What does a 1st & 10 decision look like versus a 3rd down gotta-have-it type situation? And the situational aspect of football itself.”
O’Connell continues: “People want to talk about the game manager position of the quarterback. All 32 guys better manage the game or your team is going to lose. The best quarterbacks that have ever played this game and the best guys in the league right now do a great job managing their decision making throughout games. And it can change from the ebbs and flows of a game.”
So, some nuance within Kevin O’Connell’s thoughts about that dreaded term.
For O’Connell, being a game manager isn’t necessarily an insult. Rather, it’s a needed component of being a successful quarterback insofar as it helps to dictate how the quarterback is going to address a specific moment of the game. Going for it all on 1st & 10 isn’t always a wise choice; going for it all on the necessary 3rd down makes quite a bit more sense.
Shift things back around to Cousins, someone who could never fully escape the term. Two examples can be found in the 2022 season: the remarkable throw to Justin Jefferson against the Bills and then the less-than-remarkable throw to T.J. Hockenson short of the sticks against the Giants.
In the first instance, Kevin O’Connell would say that Cousins is being a good game manager. Minnesota needed that first down against Buffalo, thereby necessitating a risky, bold throw to Jefferson. Tip of the cap to the quarterback for understanding the moment and taking an appropriate risk.
Move into the Giants playoff game. For a lot of commentators, throwing to the tight end short of the sticks is a classic game manager move; Cousins shrunk while the pocket was collapsing, taking a safe option despite the moment needing boldness.
Kevin O’Connell’s description of what it means to be a game manager seems to insist that Cousins didn’t do a nice job in that moment. O’Connell’s ideal game manager would have understood that if Jefferson wasn’t an option down the field, then another receiver — Adam Thielen or K.J. Osborn, perhaps — needed to be the target.
As the 2025 NFL season inches closer, the development of J.J. McCarthy is going to be the top Vikings story to monitor. Kevin O’Connell is hoping that the kid QB turns into the best version of a game manager, someone who knows when to be safe and when to create some magic.
The Vikings’ opening preseason game arrives on Saturday, August 9th and will take place against the Houston Texans inside U.S. Bank Stadium. Mr. McCarthy could plausibly be tasked with playing a series or two as he works on managing a game.
