Vikings Seem to Confirm the New QB Plan
The Vikings seem to have made the move at quarterback even if there was the usual jumble of words that mean essentially nothing.
On Friday afternoon, Kevin O’Connell took some time to chat with the media. The status of Minnesota’s quarterback position came up, leading to the Vikings’ head coach to offer these thoughts on J.J. McCarthy: “He will get some work in, got some work today. And will hopefully get some work throughout the early part of the week, which will lead him into a full week of preparation. And feel positive about him.”
Vikings Seem to Have Handed Baton to J.J. McCarthy
To begin, a brief word of caution.
The mere reality of Coach O’Connell feeling positive is no reason to throw a parade. Optimism is his default setting, an outlook that seldom gets scrubbed away no matter how bleak the circumstances. U.S. Bank Stadium could be crumbling and the top coach would still find a way to put a positive spin on the innovative architecture. So, don’t get too crazy with O’Connell preaching positivity.
There is, nevertheless, a reason to be optimistic about seeing the kid QB line up under center. O’Connell appears to have dropped the almighty key words: full preparation.
Mr. McCarthy needs his ankle to be healthy. That’s the opening hurdle that O’Connell had in front of McCarthy. But then the full health needed to lead into full preparation: “And then throughout that process, it’s not just, I don’t think it’s one of those things where it’s, hey, the day he’s healthy and if he’s healthy the night before a game, we’re going to just throw him out there.”
O’Connell, in other words, needs full health to lead to full practice participation. On that point he has been consistent (stubbornly so).
Contrast the approach with Aaron Jones, the runner who made it back in time for Week 8.
The veteran runner has been an NFL football player for a little while. Even better, he’s a team captain who has proven his toughness, versatility, and skill on various occasions. There’s a lot of confidence in what Mr. Jones can do even if he doesn’t have the full allotment of preparation.
Accordingly, the Vikings cleared roster space — saying goodbye to rookie linebacker Kobe King — with very little room to merge onto the highway. With Jones, put the keys into the ignition and let the runner speed down the highway.
Not so with J.J. McCarthy. The plan has involved giving the 22-year-old quarterback a lot of room on the on-ramp before asking him to merge onto the highway.
At long last, the Vikings appear to have arrived at the time when it’s McCarthy under center. The prophesied “full week of preparation” is the central factor.
Do note, as well, that Coach O’Connell circled around to J.J. McCarthy later on in the presser. The head coach referred to McCarthy as “an integral part” of the offense, someone who needs to “throw completions” and “get [the Vikings’] playmakers involved.” So, too, is there a mention of “his athleticism” while emphasizing how he can scramble for a 1st Down.
“For J.J.,” O’Connell goes on to explain, “it’s going to be about the commitment that he’s made throughout his rehab to getting back to those concrete fundamentals and techniques.”
What’s striking about O’Connell’s answer is that he’s talking about J.J. McCarthy in a manner that makes it sound as though the new QB1 is inevitable. In fact, he looks forward to Detroit (the Week 9 opponent), praising the Lions defense before explaining that staying ahead of the sticks is going to be part of McCarthy’s job: “I think J.J. will play a role in that.”
Stepping away from O’Connell’s presser certainly makes it sound as though McCarthy will be back for Week 9.
Across a pair of games, J.J. McCarthy has completed an unsustainable 58.5% of his passes, a very poor outcome. He’ll need to improve on this poor percentage in a hurry. Doing so will allow the offense to stay on the field, chewing up clock and (ideally for Minnesota) scoring points with greater consistency.
There’s then the need to protect the football since he has a trio of interceptions and a trio of fumbles in just two games. No need to get too sophisticated in the analysis of those numbers: J.J. McCarthy needs both to decrease dramatically.
On Sunday, November 2nd, the Vikings will take on the Lions at 12 p.m. CT at Ford Field. Look for Mr. J.J. McCarthy so earn the start as the Vikings seek to climb up to .500 with a 4-4 record.
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