Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy hasn’t panned out in his first six games of his NFL career, but his disastrous start could be a symptom of what the Vikings did wrong as an organization at quarterback.
“Part of the problem seems to be that he’s thinking too much and trying too hard,” NFL insider Mike Florio wrote. “If so, it’s for good reason. The broader circumstances have put him under incredible pressure to perform.”
McCarthy’s performance consists of a 54.1% completion rate for 929 yards and six touchdowns versus 10 interceptions amid a 2-4 record, and he’s been beset by injuries — a year lost to a meniscus tear, an ankle injury, and now a concussion. Florio makes it clear that McCarthy’s performance is “not all his fault” for what has gone wrong since the team made him the No. 10 pick in the 2024 draft out of Michigan.
“The fault ultimately flows to the Vikings,” Florio wrote. “With or without Kirk Cousins returning for 2024, the Vikings planned to roll the dice on a rookie quarterback. With four off the board in the top eight, they moved up a spot to take McCarthy over Bo Nix at No. 10.”
How Vikings Miscalculated at QB
Cousins has put up good numbers at times with the Atlanta Falcons, where he landed in free agency after his Vikings exit. Bo Nix, meanwhile, has the Denver Broncos in first place for the AFC West, ahead of the Kansas City Chiefs.
“They surely saw something in McCarthy. Or maybe his personality influenced them to overlook the lack of overall throws at Michigan, where he had 22.13 attempts per game in 2023. (Nix averaged 33.57 that same season.) Maybe the belief that McCarthy could become the leader they needed caused them not to fret about his habit of having one pitch in his arsenal: Fastball,” Florio wrote.
McCarthy didn’t have to lead the Wolverines to a national championship season that year. He had an elite defense and a strong offensive talent around him. While the Vikings have fielded a strong defense and have elite offensive talent, similar results haven’t translated for McCarthy, going from maze and blue to purple.
Pressure Only Mounted in 2024
With McCarthy sidelined in 2024, Sam Darnold took off with a 14-3 season, which earned him a big contract with the Seattle Seahawks. The Vikings also let go of Daniel Jones, a midseason pickup, who turned around his career with the Indianapolis Colts this year.
Florio sees that as unnecessary pressure on McCarthy to keep the Vikings at the same or a similar level as Darnold did in 2024. As Florio also pointed out, the Vikings’ passing on Aaron Rodgers — and nixing a repeat of the Brett Favre career plan — added “even more pressure on McCarthy” this year.
“In the abstract, did it make sense to find out what they have in McCarthy? Yes,” Florio wrote. “But the Vikings whiffed on the broader strategic question as to the potential impact that passing on Darnold, Jones, and Rodgers would have on the pressure cooker occupied by McCarthy.”
The Vikings have already seen a taste of what they’ve missed when facing Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers earlier this season. Minnesota will next see Darnold and the Seahawks in Week 13.
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