What the Vikings Learned about J.J. McCarthy in New York
Vikings Hall of Fame Coach Bud Grant had a few favorite sayings. One was: a successful coach needs “a patient wife, a loyal dog, and a great quarterback, and not necessarily in that order.” Bud sometimes added “a fourth-quarter pass rush.”
His other oft-repeated quote was “a player can’t achieve greatness without durability.”
The result mattered less than the information gathered, as Minnesota evaluated McCarthy’s growth, limitations, and durability in a game that tested all three.
Which brings us to J.J. McCarthy. For McCarthy to become for Kevin O’Connell what Hall of Famer Fran Tarkenton was for Grant — a great and durable quarterback — McCarthy first has to become a more durable player.
After leaving Sunday’s win over the Giants late in the first half with a right hand injury, he’s played 8 ½ games over his first two seasons heading into the final two games against the Lions and Packers. X-rays at the stadium were negative for a break, but further testing was taking place on Monday, and the short week before this Thursday’s game is problematic.
Takeaways That Matter Most from the Vikings’ Win over Giants
The hand injury is his fourth in his two-year NFL career, including his rookie year, lost to meniscus surgery, followed this season by a sprained ankle that cost him five games and a concussion in his first year as the starter.
In the first half at cold, windy MetLife Stadium, McCarthy continued his much-improved recent play until his final snap (the strip sack/TD caused in part by not being able to grip the ball). He completed 9 of 14 passes for 108 yards with one interception (on a drop by Jalen Nailor), but there were three drops, including Nailor’s, one by Justin Jefferson (who had a great game other than that miscue), and a TD drop by Jordan Addison, which was his eighth drop this season, third-most in the league.
McCarthy’s line should’ve been 12 of 14 for 148 yards, one TD, and no interceptions, which would’ve given him a passer rating in the 140 range instead of 58. A positive for McCarthy is that with his third straight win, he’s now over .500 at 5-4 for his early career.
It was nice to see Max Brosmer perform much better than he did in his awful Seattle game with four picks. He had no miscues and hit the big 21-yarder on 3rd-and-17 to Jefferson (on what Jefferson called “a perfect throw”) with 9:44 left to set up the game-winning field goal by Will Reichard. But the Vikings are certainly hoping McCarthy can play on Christmas Day against the Lions and then face the Packers, so his late-season ascent can continue.
Here are my other reactions from the Vikings’ win over the Giants
1. Good defense travels well: It was an outstanding day for the Vikings D. They allowed only 141 total yds and an incredible 13 yards passing by Jaxson Dart, who had played well before facing the Vikings D. This improved their league ranking to fifth in yards allowed and third against the pass. The Giants converted only 2 of 10 third downs and 1 of 3 on fourth down.
The Vikings sacked Dart five times and were close to two more (roughing the passer calls on Eric Wilson and Harrison Smith nullified those sacks). Andrew Van Ginkel’s sack on 4th-and-3 from the Giants 47 with 2:05 left set the stage for the Vikings to run out the clock.
The Vikings finally picked off a deflected pass (by Byron Murphy in the second quarter, setting up McCarthy’s 12-yard TD run for a 13-3 lead). It was Murphy’s first pick of the season after six last year when he made the Pro Bowl.
It was a vintage Brian Flores defensive gem against a rookie QB, with Dart confused and rattled by the pressure. It will be a tougher task for the Purple D this week against the Lions’ third-ranked offense, but the Vikings did a great job against Detroit in the 27-24 Week 9 win in the Motor City with five sacks of Jared Goff and only 65 rushing yards allowed.
2. Aaron Jones & Jefferson stand out among skill players on offense: Jones showed his guts and determination in staying in the game despite a sore ankle after Jordan Mason left early with an ankle injury. Jones rushed 21 times for 85 yards, had a big fourth-down pickup, and sealed the win with a 9-yard run on third-and-8 from the Giants’ 37 with 1:49 left. Jones also made a terrific lead block on McCarthy’s TD run. The 31-year-old Jones is showing his value as a quality back and team leader, making him worth bringing back in 2026.
Jefferson made some great runs for first downs with screens, and several difficult sideline catches, including the critical 21-yarder on 3rd-and-17 in the fourth quarter. After three straight rough games for the all-pro with a total of only six catches for 37 yards, he had six catches for 85 yards.
Jefferson needs only 83 yards over the final two games to reach 1,000 or more receiving yards for the sixth straight year. He passed Jarvis Landry for most receptions over the first six seasons (now at 567). He’s at 8,349 receiving yards and needs only 27 yards against the Lions to pass Randy Moss for the NFL record in a player’s first six seasons.
3. O-line solid, especially in the run game late vs tough interior: it was difficult to run on the Giants front that included Pro Bowler Dexter Lawrence and 2025 third overall pick Abdul Carter, especially on a day when the weather made it hard to pass and as the Giants knew the Vikings would lean hard on the run game when Brosmer replaced McCarthy. One hundred fourteen rushing yards was a good showing, and the offensive line was missing Christian Darrisaw and lost Ryan Kelly to another concussion in the first half.
There was excellent execution on the 3rd-and-8 run for nine yards and a game-sealing first down by Jones. Michael Jurgens (in place of Kelly) sealed off Lawrence and Will Fries, Donovan Jackson, and Brian O’Neill (battling through his heel injury) also made great blocks on the play.
4. Offense efficient on third downs — 7 of 12 — and 1 of 1 on fourth down with Jones picking it up on a 3-yard run.
5. Reichard 4 for 4 in the cold and wind: I say it every week, but Reichard is having a Pro Bowl season with only two missed kicks (27 of 29 on field goals and a perfect 28 for 28 on extra points). He’s a huge asset to a team that hasn’t been as prolific offensively this season as last year.
Myles Price also played an important special teams role with no miscues as he handled the two punts in the wind (with one fair catch and a 12-yard return).
6. Too many penalties: It was a problem for both teams as they were each hit with 11 penalties (for 90 yards for the Vikings). After two games with only three penalties in each game, it was disappointing to revert to the penalty-filled form that was costly in several games this season.
Around the NFL Observations from Week 16
1. What a huge win for the Bears and surprising to see a successful onside kick as a key play along with two clutch TD passes by Caleb Williams in the overtime victory over the Packers to take control of the NFC North. The Bears need one more win to clinch the division (which won’t be easy — at San Fran, then home vs. Detroit) or one Packers loss (home vs. Ravens, at Vikings). The Packers have Jordan Love in concussion protocol this week.
2. Detroit’s home loss to Pittsburgh on the final play (with an offensive pass interference call on Amon-Ra St. Brown) was a crushing blow. The Lions’ defense allowed 230 rushing yards (143 to Jaylen Warren), and Aaron Rodgers had 266 passing yards and one TD with no interceptions.
Goff passed for 364 yards and three TDs, but the Detroit run game was stuffed with only 15 yards on 12 carries (Jahmyr Gibbs had seven carries for 2 yards). It’s perhaps a good omen for the Vikings D that held the Lions run game in check (65 yards) in the Week 9 win.
The loss dropped the Lions to 8-7 and a playoff longshot after 15 wins last season. Who would’ve predicted the Vikings (14 wins in 2024) and Lions would be basically playing for pride on Christmas Day after their regular-season ending matchup last year was for the division title and top NFC seed?
But who would’ve predicted the Chiefs would be 6-9 after three straight Super Bowl appearances with two titles and 10 consecutive years in the playoffs? Or the Ravens would fall from playoff regulars to 7-8, or the Commanders from an NFC title game to 4-11? That’s life in the NFL, where teams such as the Bears, Patriots, Jaguars, and Panthers have gone from the outhouse to the penthouse in one season.
3. Jacksonville is an under-the-radar 11-4 team that just stopped Denver’s 11-game winning streak with an impressive 34-20 road win. QB Trevor Lawrence threw for 279 yards and three TDs.
4. Here’s a fascinating stat: the Eagles are the first team to win two straight NFC East titles since the Eagles did it in 2003-2004. They don’t look like a Super Bowl team this season, but Philly won’t be an easy out with their postseason pedigree.
I’ll be back tomorrow to preview Thursday’s Christmas Day rematch between the Vikings and Lions as the Vikings seek an unexpected season sweep over their division rival.
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