Turns Out It’s Go Time
The Minnesota Vikings kicked off their OTAs on Tuesday. On the field were some notable players, including Justin Jefferson, who skipped that phase in the last two years. It’s important to mention that OTAs are voluntary. Giving a player a huge contract usually makes them show up.
Turns Out It’s Go Time
One Viking is even more notable, though. J.J. McCarthy, the new starting quarterback for your Vikings, was present, too. The cool part? The franchise posted a one-minute video of him slinging the rock on their social media airwaves.
The takeaways are limited, obviously. Firstly, it’s OTAs and not training camp, joint practices, or the preseason, when people clinch or lose jobs in competitive situations, and we can gauge whether the passer is accurate and on time. Secondly, the Vikings wouldn’t release anything that paints a full picture or makes them look bad.
It looks like he’s running at full speed, and he surely wouldn’t be on the field if there was any concern with his knee, so that’s a good sign.
Perhaps one takeaway could be that McCarthy took snaps from Ryan Kelly, Minnesota’s new center. Kelly was signed to take over for Garrett Bradbury after six years.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell has yet to announce McCarthy’s obvious status as the team’s QB1. It’s a foregone conclusion, but we’re still waiting on the official announcement. However, O’Connell hinted at McCarthy getting a bunch of reps with the first-team offense when Rich Eisen pressed him about the QB1 designation, and he used center Kelly as the clue.
“When he is taking snaps, he’s taking plenty of snaps from [starter] Ryan Kelly, who happens to be a 10-year starting center in this league. Take that for what it’s worth. I don’t think Vikings fans or any wildly successful nationally renowned broadcasters like yourself should be worried about the amount of reps J.J. is going to get with the ones. We’re going to have him ready to go.”
As you can see in the video, Kelly is snapping him the ball, signaling McCarthy is throwing to the top players on offense.
In the video, he’s also tossing the ball to Aaron Jones, T.J. Hockenson, and the aforementioned Jefferson. It’s crucial for those players to form a connection with the new signal-caller, and nothing beats shared reps on the field to achieve that.
Last month, the quarterback also addressed that the bond between him and Jefferson is essential: “More reps, the better. On the field, off the field — as much time as I can spend around him. But he’s such a phenomenal talent, a once-in-a-generation type player. You don’t necessarily adapt your game to him, but you’ve got to understand it’s going to take reps and reps and reps to really feel his routes in and out of the break.”
The Vikings have the potential to feature an explosive offense in the upcoming season, but that obviously depends on McCarthy’s development. The infrastructure is fantastic, with three new interior starters (if Donovan Jackson wins the starting job over Blake Brandel) on the offensive line. Furthermore, the mentioned pass-catchers and head coach O’Connell will also help him reach his potential.
The 22-year-old quarterback will be in the spotlight all offseason.
Vikings’ Summer Plans Include an Unforeseen Competition