J.J. McCarthy Trashed by Popular NFL Voice
Some already believe Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy is toast, destined to bust and amount to nothing. One example is Fox Sports’ Colin Cowherd, who wasn’t bashful this week about teeing off on the 22-year-old passer.
A well-known NFL analyst took aim at Vikings rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy, questioning his readiness and poise after recent struggles under center.
Cowherd doesn’t believe that McCarthy has the juice.
Colin Cowherd Continues Crusade against J.J. McCarthy
Another blow in the court of public opinion.
McCarthy May Not Make It in Minnesota, Says Cowherd
Cowherd addressed McCarthy’s first four games as a pro Monday, speaking on his show, The Herd.
He remarked, “J.J. McCarthy, off script, passer rating, 57. The hardest thing in the NFL, in my opinion, beyond just winning, is acknowledging for GMs and coaches, we made a mistake in that first-round pick. I’d let J.J. play the entire year. Got nothing to lose. I do think if you’re good on the first drive, it means you’re coachable.”
“And I think his arm is an NFL arm, but Kevin O’Connell’s had seven quarterbacks in Minnesota. J.J. is sixth, and I’m watching Justin Jefferson, and he’s about done with it. I don’t want to be negative. He was the one. I don’t want to do confirmation bias, because this was the one first-round quarterback I didn’t get it.”
Cowherd then claimed that Michigan players don’t translate to the NFL quite as well as those from other schools.
“What we’ve seen about all those Michigan guys, Roman Wilson, Blake Corum, we’ve noted. Have you noticed this? J.J., if you notice this, they’re not as good as pros. It’s not like the Georgia guys that come in like Jalen Carter and are immediately a top two player in the league at his position,” Cowherd opined.
Cowherd ended by saying that McCarthy doesn’t have the necessary traits for QB1: “It’s not the Bama guys that walk in, the wide receivers, and you’re like, ‘Oh yeah, that guy.’ A lot of those Michigan guys, a lot of it was hardball, and I’m watching and I know he’s a winner. I get it, but I don’t get the traits. I don’t see it.”
Cowherd Was a Sam Darnold Guy
Why is Cowherd so critical of McCarthy, not affording him the patience that most do for 22-year-old quarterbacks? It might be his affinity for Sam Darnold, who quarterbacks the Seattle Seahawks after leading Minnesota to a 14-3 record last season and an unfortunate capitulation in the postseason.
Cowherd said on the same show in May: “J.J. McCarthy, you’re going to see it very quickly — is not what people think. J.J. McCarthy is a ‘C’ quarterback. You ever seen J.J. McCarthy’s fourth quarter college stats and playing from behind fourth quarter stats in college, with Michigan and Harbaugh and that O-line? They’re terrible.”
“I think the Bears eke into the playoffs. I think Jordan Love, I like. I think they’re worried about him … they’ve got a couple other needs defensively, and they went with a wide receiver again. The Vikings — I think letting Sam Darnold go, I think they may regret it.”
Cowherd also predicted that Darnold would thrive in Minnesota before it happened. He did nail that prognostication.
An Unfinished Book on McCarthy
Quarterbacks start to see real stabilization for future trajectory around 250-300 passing attempts. McCarthy has passed the ball 108 times in four games.
While it’s fine to analyze McCarthy or any quarterback’s first handful of games, their true colors don’t begin to emerge until 10 starts or so. For McCarthy, that’s around December of this season, assuming he stays upright and healthy.
McCarthy has shown flashes of prominence, especially in games against key rivals, helping Minnesota knock off the Chicago Bears in Week 1 and Detroit Lions in Week 9. He’s also struggled and played inconsistently in other games.
In short, it’s really bizarre for Cowherd to declare that McCarthy “doesn’t have the traits” after 108 passing attempts. Almost all high-profile quarterbacks are afforded more than four games before a verdict is rendered.
Run the Ball, According to Fans
Of course, the Vikings’ coaching staff could make McCarthy’s life much easier. They just haven’t done it to date.
Minnesota averages 4.6 yards per rush this season, ranking 13th in the NFL through 10 weeks, but also runs the ball fourth-least — 38.4% of the time. The ground game, led by Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason, has worked when the ball is in their hands, but head coach Kevin O’Connell prefers to throw the pigskin at a 62% clip.
In a utopia, those percentages could be flopped: run the ball around 60% of the time with a 22-year-old passer under center, and throw 40%.
Minnesota is not doing that, instead trusting McCarthy to be a game-breaker with his arm.
With or without Cowherd’s bleak assessment, the Vikings are favored to defeat Ben Johnson’s Bears by 3.5 points this weekend.
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