Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy at the first day of rookie minicamp on May 10th, 2024, in Eagan, Minnesota. TCO Performance Center. McCarthy was drafted by the Vikings with the 10th overall pick on April 25th, 2024 in Detroit.
The Minnesota Vikings needed to find a way for the franchise to replace Kirk Cousins. That was going to be confirmed whether he was re-signed on a short term deal or not. Ultimately, he chose a payday from the Atlanta Falcons, and Kevin O’Connell was left looking for answers. J.J. McCarthy is now the answer for the future, and being described as having major juice is hardly a bad thing.
Throughout the draft process, there was maybe no more uncertain prospect than J.J. McCarthy when it came to his ultimate positioning. Caleb Williams was going to go first overall, followed by Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye. How high a team needed to jump for McCarthy’s services was uncertain, but the answer wound up being 10th overall for the Minnesota Vikings.
The greatest question for McCarthy to overcome is how good he could be when asked to lead an offense. With the Michigan Wolverines, it was often the Blake Corum show. McCarthy was very clearly a talented collegiate quarterback, but if tasked with spreading the ball around an NFL offense, would he be in over his head? While practicing in shorts and without getting hit, the early answer is that his arm talent is special.
Vikings beat writer Alec Lewis suggested that McCarthy has “major juice” behind the appendage pushing a football down the field. That’s a positive in and of itself. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily address any accuracy analysis, but being able to chuck the pigskin is a large part of playing quarterback at the highest level.
Minnesota might employ the best one-two punch at the wide receiver position in the entire NFL. Justin Jefferson is the gold standard at the position, and Jordan Addison’s impressive acclimatization a year ago was impressive.
Both can quickly separate from opposing cornerbacks, and they must provide windows for their rookie signal-caller.
It remains to be seen just how soon McCarthy will start for the Vikings. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah brought in Sam Darnold as a veteran bridge this offseason. He could work out in an ideal situation for the first time in his career, but eventually, it will become the McCarthy show. How quickly the Wolverines signal caller goes from “major juice” on his arm to pinpoint passing will be part of that.
Ted Schwerzler is a blogger from the Twin Cities that is focused on all things Minnesota Twins and Minnesota Vikings. He’s active on Twitter and writes weekly for Twins Daily. As a former college athlete and avid sports fan, covering our pro teams with a passion has always seemed like such a natural outlet.