A Dissection of the Vikings’ QB Battle So Far

A young fan, Ryker Ahlers, of Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy on July 27th, 2024, at TCO Performance Center in Eagan, Minnesota. The Vikings drafted McCarthy in Round 1 of the 2024 NFL Draft with the 10th overall pick. He takes over for Kirk Cousins.

The first observation was QB coach Josh McCown working with J.J. McCarthy on his footwork. There seemed to be a jump step of sorts as McCarthy planted his right foot on a few dropbacks.

A Dissection of the Vikings’ QB Battle So Far

McCown had him smooth out that jump step as he planted his foot, quieting his feet in a sense. Jaren Hall then provided a perfect demonstration for McCarthy on the next rep. From what I saw, McCarthy didn’t do this throughout the remainder of the practice. More on his performance later.

deal
Minnesota quarterback J. McCarthy talks about trading nicknames with wide receiver Justin Jefferson, getting acquainted with Minnesota, pregame meditation, listening to Bob Marley and more. The Vikings drafted McCarthy in Round 1 of the 2024 NFL Draft with the 10th overall pick. He takes over for Kirk Cousins.

My second observation with the quarterbacks is how they conducted themselves throughout practice. I focused on Sam Darnold, to begin with, then McCarthy. Here are some early impressions.

Sam Darnold

I would describe Darnold as mechanical. He’s not as robotic as Kirk Cousins, but he conducts himself in a similar fashion while operating practice. His experience shows. He appears to be a fairly polished practicer in individual drills, setting the tone early with crispness and doing things the right way, like enthusiastically selling the play-action fakes.

As for Darnold’s performance …

During practice, Darnold threw an ugly interception in red zone drills. He tried pump-faking but still illustrated a throw to the middle of the field that Harrison Smith picked off. On the very next play, he scanned the entire field before connecting on a touchdown pass to Jalen Nailor. The bounce-back was nice, though it should be noted there was no pass rush on the rep.

sam darnold
New Minnesota quarterback Sam Darnold at June 2024 minicamp. Eagan, Minnesota. TCO Performance Center. Darnold has played with the New York Jets, Carolina Panthers, and San Francisco 49ers in his six-year career.

Darnold faced consistent pressure from the defense during team drills. Jaquelin Roy beat Ed Ingram causing a would-be hospital ball from Darnold to Justin Jefferson. Later, Darnold left Jefferson out to dry again on a route across the middle that was nearly picked off by Theo Jackson (pass interference was called on Dwight McGlothern, who was covering Jefferson). At one point, Darnold seemed confused by the defensive formation and called an audible to a run play that was stuffed in the backfield by James Lynch.

Darnold did have the best throw of the day — a beautiful, deep, arching pass that Jordan Addison caught down the left sideline.

J.J. McCarthy

McCarthy, at least today, wasn’t as swift as Darnold between reps, but he had a lot more interaction with his teammates. He was very involved, whether high-fiving guys or just being vocal — I’m not sure I’ve seen a more social quarterback in a training camp with the Vikings. Based on body language, he appears to be an emotional and animated guy.

As for today’s performance … McCarthy was better than I expected.

QB Battle
Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports | Jan 7, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterback S. Darnold (14) before the game against the Los Angeles Rams at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports.

While footwork may be a focus of his in the early development stages of his career, McCarthy has an arm that’s more than adequate. During red zone drills, McCarthy threw multiple touchdowns on passes where he reduced the velocity of the ball without losing accuracy.

I did not see McCarthy throw an incompletion on throws to his left, specifically. He actually threw quite well in that direction all practice.

bleacher report
J.J. McCarthy with the Minnesota Vikings practice highlights from OTA No. 2 of 2024, which took place at the TCO Performance Center. The Minnesota Vikings used the 10th overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft to select McCarthy after a trade up the board with the New York Jets.

I’ll continue to monitor each quarterback’s progression throughout camp.

That’s it for today. Check out Sean’s Twitter feed @SeanBormanNFL. More to come from Vikings training camp in the days ahead.