While Minnesota Vikings starting quarterback Sam Darnold has led the team to an 8-2 start and a probable playoff berth, the team’s future with J.J. McCarthy is not lost on head coach Kevin O’Connell.
In a November 20 appearance on KFAN radio, O’Connell offered insight into the development of McCarthy, who is in a redshirt year after undergoing season-ending meniscus surgery in August.
And from what O’Connell has gathered from those meetings, it will be “really, really exciting” when McCarthy returns.
“I do spend one of my favorite meetings of the whole week on Thursdays. Him and I have lunch together on Thursdays for about an hour… He’s a very, very smart kid, wants to know information, and is hungry for it,” O’Connell said.
O’Connell added that McCarthy has prepared for every week as the would-be starter, coming to Thursday’s meeting with questions about the game plan and higher concepts — all part of McCarthy’s growth mindset that O’Connell said he believes will go a long way.
“I’m bringing up clips, I’m showing him tape. I’m basically taking him to the deep cuts of how we build things each and every week,” O’Connell said. “I think that’s been a huge part of it because… if you went around the league to some of these [quarterbacks] who are playing that were drafted around where J.J. was, I bet they would all say they just wish they had a little bit more time… without the pressure of a noon game on Sunday.”
J.J. McCarthy Remains Key to Vikings’ Plans at QB
The 10th overall pick in the 2024 draft, McCarthy is the keystone to the Vikings’ succession plan for Kirk Cousins.
McCarthy’s growth from spring minicamps to his first preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders was notable. He went 11-for-17 for 188 yards, 2 passing touchdowns and an interception. Darnold was still considered the favorite to start Week 1, but there was genuine belief among beat reporters that McCarthy could compete for the starting job with a strong showing in joint practices with the Cleveland Browns the following week.
McCarthy never stepped foot on those proving grounds. He returned to the team facility on Monday after the Raiders’ game with knee soreness, later diagnosed as a torn meniscus, ending his rookie year before it began.
Despite the setback, O’Connell has not approached McCarthy’s rookie year as lost time.
“We’ve tried to build that as if it is truly a methodically-built redshirt year,” O’Connell said. “To where it may be his first start when he takes the field for the first time for us, but not without a lot of time on task and a purposely-driven plan for him.”
Kevin O’Connell’s Work With Darnold is Encouraging for McCarthy
O’Connell’s status as a quarterback guru is evident with Darnold’s emergence this year.
The former No. 3 overall pick was a punchline for a Vikings team that was predicted to win less than seven games this season and finish last in the division.
Through 10 games, the Vikings have already surpassed those expectations and are firmly in the playoff picture. Darnold is one of just seven quarterbacks with a 100.0 or higher quarterback rating.
It hasn’t been perfect; it’s actually been far from it. Darnold leads the league with 14 turnovers.
However, O’Connell’s commitment to accentuating Darnold’s strengths — accuracy and his mobility — has driven the Vikings offense, ranked 10th in scoring entering Week 12.
It’s a credit to the offensive infrastructure that Darnold was plugged into when he signed a one-year, $10 million contract with the Vikings, who splurged in free agency without the constraints of an expensive veteran quarterback contract.
They’ll get to do the same with McCarthy next season with $62.8 million in effective cap space.
