Minnesota Vikings second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy is already proving to be injury-prone. After lacking his rookie season due to a knee damage, he has suffered one other setback.
On Monday, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell mentioned he is not planning on having McCarthy play in Sunday’s dwelling sport towards the Cincinnati Bengals due to an ankle sprain. Nonetheless, it isn’t anticipated to be a long-term challenge.
Carson Wentz — a one-time Professional Bowler — will probably change McCarthy in Sunday’s sport. The matchup with the Bengals will function a battle of the backups. Cincinnati backup QB Jake Browning is ready to start out after Joe Burrow suffered a left toe damage in Sunday’s 31-27 dwelling victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Bengals HC Zac Taylor has confirmed it is going to require surgical procedure.
Like McCarthy, Burrow has sturdiness points. Over the course of his six-year tenure, the Bengals star has battled knee and wrist points. Nonetheless, the Vikings needs to be far more involved about their QB scenario.
J.J. McCarthy’s damage provides to rising issues concerning the QB
Apart from a spectacular fourth-quarter comeback in a 27-24 Week 1 win over the Chicago Bears, McCarthy hasn’t appeared like the reply for the Vikings by means of two begins. The Michigan product has accomplished 58.5 p.c of his passes for 301 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions throughout this span. For those who take away the comeback towards Chicago, his numbers look even worse.
A few of McCarthy’s struggles tie to the system he performed in below former Michigan HC Jim Harbaugh (now with the Los Angeles Chargers). The coach used a run-heavy scheme and did not let him air it out a lot. The one-time nationwide champion tried simply 713 passes in three seasons with the Wolverines. Falcons second-year QB Michael Penix Jr. tried 555 passes in his closing season at Washington.
Nonetheless, McCarthy needs to be extra productive with a supporting forged that features star WR Justin Jefferson and O’Connell, an offensive wizard. Final season, Seattle Seahawks QB Sam Darnold tossed a career-high 35 TD passes in 17 begins with Minnesota.
Mix his damage historical past with subpar play, and that ought to depart Minnesota with issues about McCarthy. If he cannot get wholesome and switch issues round, it might be time to start out scouting the 2026 QB class. It is headlined by Penn State’s Drew Allar, Oklahoma’s John Mateer and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier.
