When J.J. McCarthy came to the Vikings via the 2024 draft, he had all the makings of a star. Throwing cannonballs with his arm, he had a rep so high that we all knew he’d be the game-changer for the Vikings. But what’s a great story without complications, right? And that’s what his injury brought him. Handing over the reins to Sam Darnold, he could only watch from the bench as his team played without him. As the months went on, people speculated if he would be ready for the 2025 season, but now, we have some solid updates on that front.
Well, let’s circle back a little. Sam Darnold, who stepped in place of the 22-year-old, is off to the Seahawks after his one-year deal with the Vikings. And we all saw how he delivered big time! Though his contract was under the expectation that we would fight for the starting quarterback position with McCarthy, fate had other plans. The 27-year-old led the Vikings to a 14-3 regular season record, throwing for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns.
With the quarterback now headed to Seattle, the Vikings QB room now has J.J. McCarthy and Brett Rypien, and there have been a lot of speculations about who’s going to be the starter out of the two. There are also rumors floating around of the Vikings’ potential interest in signing Kirk Cousins as a QB. If Kirk does leave the Falcons as rumors dictate, he will definitely demand the starter position as he won’t want to repeat the history of Michael Penix Jr. But since Cousins’ rumored trade has also been linked to other teams, things aren’t exactly clear at this point.
Adding to this, Kevin O’Connell has skillfully avoided the question of whether he was prepared to announce McCarthy as the “anointed starter.” The head coach’s answer? “As far as that anointing word – I’m just excited to get out and start coaching up the 2025 version of the Minnesota Vikings. We’ll get our rookies in here in a couple weeks, and away we go.” Well, that certainly did not clear things up. If O’Connell does have a plan in mind, he’s holding his cards and his options close to himself. But he is excited to be working with the 5 rookies (Donovan Jackson, Tai Felton, Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, Kobe King, Gavin Bartholomew) they have drafted this year, adding depth to their roster.
“He’s had a phenomenal offseason.” @Vikings HC Kevin O’Connell on QB J.J. McCarthy as he gets ready for the 2025 season.
https://t.co/v3G0iz6gwE#Vikings | #SKOL | @KirkMorrison pic.twitter.com/QdRPiPrsSF
— SiriusXM NFL Radio (@SiriusXMNFL) April 30, 2025
While the 39-year-old may not have made explicit who will be the starting quarterback, J.J. McCarthy did give his two cents on the same during a recent media appearance. The quarterback said, “I know I’m ready to start – All the work I’ve put in and just the confidence in my skills and abilities. – I’ve got a tremendous coaching staff and group of guys around me that I can lean on, and they can lean on me.” And this guy isn’t messing around when he says his team can lean on him. He’s already chalking out offseason workout plans with Justin Jefferson.
And let’s be real- for McCarthy, his 2024 season ended before it even began and we only got to see him in his preseason debut. Though the rookie had a rocky start, as the game progressed, he demonstrated a better grip. In what was a win against the Las Vegas Raiders, his first pass to Jalen Nailor for 18 yards showcased his arm strength. Even Kevin O’Connell showed good faith in the rookie giving him plenty of reps and keeping him in the game well into the third quarter.
The University of Michigan alum finished with 11-of-17 passing for 188 yards with two TDs and an INT over six drives, while also adding two rushes for 18 yards. And as his head coach said. “Clearly, everybody can see the arm talent. I loved seeing him come right back after the interception and still be aggressive.” That’s some promise, right?
But the real deal lies with how he is recovering from the season-ending knee injury he sustained during his preseason game last year. And the head coach has a few words for that.
Injury update on J.J. McCarthy
Kevin O’Connell, HC of the Minnesota Vikings appeared on SiriusXM NFL Radio, and as per their post on X, O’Connell clarified the situation around McCarthy’s injury, “Once he went on IR, you know, and his season was over, we were going to be very smart about that progression through the fact that we had a lot of time. We had time on task to make sure that he could not only start the off-season program in a great spot but be healthy and have a real chance to grow and maximize these nine weeks to set himself up to have a great training camp.” So McCarthy is ready to play, and O’Connell also adds that “he’s had a phenomenal off-season.”
O’Connell goes on to say that McCarthy, on account of his injury and sitting on the sidelines, has had the opportunity to observe Sam Darnold learn from him and “apply it to his opportunity this year.” And McCarthy is pumped and ready to go as well after 8 months of recovery. If looks were anything to by during his recent presser, he looks healthy.
J.J. McCarthy, after a year of observing Sam Darnold in action, and learning from him, is ready to prove his mettle on the gridiron. But whether it will be him, Rypien, or a new, more experienced QB that the Vikings bring in to take the lead, we can only wait and find out.
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