The J.J. McCarthy Debate Is Nonsense
I’ve been planning to write this already, but after the QB appeared on the Up & Adams Show, things went in a weird direction — again.
The J.J. McCarthy Debate Is Nonsense
The host, Kay Adams, asked McCarthy if/when the Vikings told him he was the Vikings’ QB1. J.J. gave a great answer — that they haven’t. He said he wants to earn the job, not have it given to him. This interview, going on air just when the whole Aaron Rodgers conversation appeared to be done, looked like great timing.
However, the story of how a young quarterback wants to earn the most important job in the league, and a team supporting him by letting go the QB that won 14 games in 2024 and by not signing one of the best QBs in NFL history, became “The Vikings don’t trust J.J. McCarthy 100% and will ‘keep tabs’ on Aaron Rodgers.” Most of this comes from national media, but it still doesn’t make sense.
The day that Kevin O’Connell said that McCarthy would miss the entire season, he also noted that the Vikings had their quarterback of the future. O’Connell had nothing but praise for McCarthy every chance he got after. At his press conference earlier in the week, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah had nothing but praise for the QB. Almost every single player on the roster says how impressed they were with him, even those who arrived in free agency just now.
Most of the worry about McCarthy is that he missed his entire rookie season and is an “unknown”. Guess what? Every rookie is an unknown. That’s why teams will scout, interview, and try to project players coming to the league; they can’t know how someone will play when in the NFL.
Also, McCarthy wasn’t doing nothing after his injury. O’Connell said countless times that J.J. was in meetings as soon as possible and riding a scooter in the facility, besides working in VR simulators to get mental reps.
Another point that is being blown way out of the water is his injury. Yes, every knee injury is at least worrisome. He had to do a procedure (keyword here) because of swelling when he amped up his rehab. And he was underweight during a random game while he was rehabbing. And none of these pose serious problems to his long-term health.
Sports medicine has made great strides in meniscus surgery and recovery over the past few years. Doctors saw his swelling, decided it was nothing serious, and gave him an injection to help it. A professional athlete will lose weight every time he gets hurt for an extended period, and part of the rehab process is gaining weight back.
The Vikings approached free agency this year knowing they could plan around a QB on a rookie deal. This Vikings regimé also has the — very good — policy of leaving no stone unturned, which is why they discussed bringing in Aaron Rodgers. If Kevin O’Connell and the staff weren’t sure about J.J. McCarthy as the starter, they would have kept Sam Darnold or already signed Aaron Rodgers.
Although no one told him directly, the starting job is McCarthy’s to lose. With everything we heard about the kid in the last year, it’s hard to imagine he won’t earn it.
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