Quarterback JJ McCarthy returned as the starter of the Minnesota Vikings in one of the more difficult scenarios one can face in the NFL, a road game against the division-leading Detroit Lions with a mountain of pressure to merely justify his opportunity as QB1.
And as he did in the fourth quarter of the season-opener against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field, McCarthy rose up to meet the challenge by making clutch plays throughout the game on his way to a 14-of-25 day passing for 143 yards, two TDs and one INT along with a rushing touchdown.
Following the contest, McCarthy spoke with FOX sideline reporter Tom Rinaldi about his return, the team’s upset win to move back to .500 (4-4) on the year and what fans can expect from Minnesota moving forward.
“Obviously a lot of excitement … and I’m just so proud of the guys,” McCarthy said. “We fought, we had a different energy this week, a different level of focus. But there’s a lot more we can clean up.”
“We haven’t reached our potential,” McCarthy added. “We haven’t even gotten close yet.”
JJ McCarthy Returned to Vikings’ Starting Lineup Amid Huge Pressure, Intense Doubt
GettyQuarterback J.J. McCarthy of the Minnesota Vikings.
McCarthy’s statement echoes true not just for his team, but for the 22-year-old quarterback himself who made just the third start of his career on Sunday, November 2.
He spent the previous five games, as well as Minnesota’s bye week, sidelined with a high-ankle sprain. There were several analysts who believed that the Vikings were slow-playing McCarthy’s return in favor of veteran backup QB Carson Wentz, who went 2-3 as the starter but is now out for the season due to shoulder surgery.
One such media member was Danny Heifetz of The Ringer.
“The Vikings, to this point in the season, had the easiest schedule in the NFL. The Vikings going forward have the hardest schedule in the NFL,” Heifetz said on “The Bill Simmons Podcast” that aired on October 22. “So McCarthy comes back, he’s gonna get rocked. He’s clearly not ready for the NFL, and the Vikings are a win-now team.”
“We all wonder if the McCarthy ankle thing was a shadow benching,” Heifetz continued. “There was probably some kind of injury there, but I’m like, ‘They are hiding this guy.’”
JJ McCarthy Has Shown Clutch Abilities Across 2 Road Wins Inside NFC North Division
GettyMinnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell.
Whether Heifetz was right, wrong or somewhere in the middle with his take that Minnesota was “hiding” McCarthy, the team had no choice but to bring the second-year signal-caller back into the spotlight in Week 9.
With Wentz out, undrafted rookie Max Brosmer and John Wolford are the only other two QBs on the roster. Brosmer has never started a game, while Wolford is 2-2 in his career and hasn’t taken a regular-season snap since 2022.
McCarthy didn’t blow the doors off with his play, but he was both competent and critical, again showing his ability to make clutch plays when it counts.
“[McCarthy is] 2-0 on the road in the NFC North with him making some critical, critical plays for us to win the game,” Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell said following the contest, referencing McCarthy’s fourth-quarter heroics to best the Bears in Week 1. “He’s had three starts, two of which [came] in very difficult road environments. And his poise, him running the show, I thought was matched by him making some big-time throws.”
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