Drew Brees Pounds the Table for One Viking
The court of public opinion could not have been much lower for J.J. McCarthy entering last weekend, but then the 22-year-old turned heads with a 3-touchdown performance. Hell, he even caught Hall of Famer Drew Brees‘ eye.
Drew Brees pounded the table for one Vikings player at his old position, giving a strong endorsement that turned heads across NFL media.
Brees doesn’t dish out compliments to every NFL quarterback, but McCarthy got some love after his Week 14 showing.
Drew Brees is In on J.J. McCarthy
Not a bad endorsement
A Possibly “Defining Moment” for McCarthy, Says Brees
Now a commentator after his illustrious playing days, Brees kept close tabs on McCarthy last weekend.
He said about the youngster, “For a guy like J.J. McCarthy, this could be a defining moment type of game for him. Just the way that he has come out and found his rhythm so early, hitting a lot of the first and second progressions in rhythm, I think it just reinforces everything that Kevin O’Connell has been preaching to him, and now you’re just seeing that come to fruition.”
“I think as he continues to grow and improve, I think it’s the layered balls, those 2 and 3 ball throws into the middle of the field where you’re dropping it over the backer in front of the safety, that’s where he can make the biggest strides as he continues to grow as a young quarterback in this league.”
And the “defining moment” is what Vikings fans have hoped for — and will continue to hope for — regarding McCarthy’s performance from the moment he “looked the part” against the Commanders. The fan base has prayed for a lightbulb moment. According to Brees, Week 14 might’ve been just that.
The Statistical Performance
McCarthy accounted for 163 passing yards — a tiny total by NFL QB1 standards — but made up for the modest yards output with 3 touchdown passes and zero turnovers. Until Week 14, turnovers plagued McCarthy, and in fact, he was responsible for at least one every time he stepped foot on a football field.
But he played cleanly against the Commanders, operating the game flow, allowing the rushing offense to cook, and mostly hitting his receivers on passing downs. It’s what Vikings fans had envisioned all the way back to the early summer.
Before his rebound outing, some fans had already written McCarthy off because his first six games, as a whole, were so terrible. Oddly, McCarthy had only thrived in crucial 4th Quarter moments until Week 14, a really strange situation, as most “bad quarterbacks” struggle in the clutch, too.
Not McCarthy. He has delivered when his team needs him the most late in games, and finally, the man strung together four good quarters consecutively. That caught Brees’ attention.
A Corner Turned?
Now, it’s all about sustainability. Nearly all 1st-Round quarterbacks can author a single game. McCarthy must stack competent games, preferably in a row.
And it will help if McCarthy targets his best player.
He has to start feeding Justin Jefferson — period. Improvement is nice, but the next step is obvious: get the best player involved. Yes, McCarthy cleaned things up against Washington. Yes, he ran the offense without chaos. And yes, a 31-0 shutout hides a lot of sins.
But hiding behind the scoreboard doesn’t change the fact that Jefferson had 63 yards across his last three games. That’s absurd for a former Offensive Player of the Year.
McCarthy threw that trio of touchdowns Sunday — all to tight ends. Great for the scheme, brutal for the long-term WR outlook. At some point, Jefferson can’t be treated like a role player. McCarthy has to figure out how to get him touches, early and often. The development track isn’t complicated: grow into a QB who makes life easier for the superstar who changes games. The ball needs to find Jefferson, and everyone knows it.
Four Games to Tell All
Finally, the stakes: McCarthy’s ride has been so bumpy that most have questioned whether he’s “the guy” at all. For 60 minutes last weekend, the 22-year-old displayed the grit and production to make a case as “the guy.” But it takes much more than that.
McCarthy has four games left — Cowboys, Giants, Lions, and Packers — to show the Vikings’ brass and coaching staff that he is the unquestioned QB1 for the 2026 season. If he regresses, and the Week 14 game turns out to be a mirage, Minnesota may have to explore an offseason trade for a passer like Mac Jones or Kyler Murray. The organization could also draft another quarterback, though that’s mostly unexpected.
McCarthy’s mission statement is clear for the rest of the month and into January: improve — and then improve some more.
More from Brees on McCarthy
Brees added additional context on McCarthy and the Vikings, saying, “Hard to believe that that’s a 5-8 football team right now just based on what we just witnessed. Honestly, I think just reestablishing their identity on offense and getting J.J. McCarthy some confidence. Obviously, he’s been banged up a lot, but he came out here and was ultra-efficient. They ran the ball extremely well. They incorporated everybody.”
“And honestly, if the defense is going to play like that, you know, force turnovers, wreak havoc on the opposing offense, create a ton of short fields for you…this team is going to be really tough here down the stretch, and they’re gonna play some teams like a Dallas, like a Detroit. So maybe even if Minnesota is out of it in terms of the playoff race, they have a chance to play some spoiler and get some key reps down the stretch.”
The Vikings will play Brees’ former team, the Saints, again in 2026 in New Orleans.
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