J.J. McCarthy finally gave Vikings fans something real to believe in

J.J. McCarthy is the new quarterback the Minnesota Vikings are turning to and he’s not wasting any time flexing his arm strength. According to Kevin Seifert, who covers the Vikings for ESPN, McCarthy dropped a 60-yard bomb to Jordan Addison during training camp on Wednesday. If that’s a good omen, the Vikings are in good shape. 

Minnesota is on its third starting quarterback for the third straight year. Sam Darnold was a breath of fresh air after Kirk Cousins’ tenure in Minnesota ended with a torn Achilles tendon. When Darnold was thrust into the starting role after McCarthy tore his ACL, we didn’t know what to expect. 

Now a year later, McCarthy has massive shoes to fill after Darnold put together a phenomenal season. If his training camp is any indication, we can stop doubting what McCarthy will be for the Vikings in 2025. 

J.J. McCarthy is shedding any doubt about his readiness for 2025 season

There’s probably a lot of doubt about what McCarthy will be for the Vikings as he’s preparing to take over a team that was 14-3 and reached the NFL playoffs. There’s a lot of uncertainty about McCarthy simply because he missed his rookie season and wasn’t necessarily elite at Michigan. 

While he did win a national championship, the Wolverines relied heavily on the running attack and their defense to be the best team in college football back in 2023. Taking nothing away from him, it’s just he didn’t have to be the reason why his team won or lost. And maybe Michigan didn’t have to unleash him. We didn’t get to see the strong passer McCarthy is. 

His NFL debut this year will give us a great snapshot and he’s doing everything he can before then to silence any doubt. He threw just under 3,000 yards his final year at Michigan with 22 touchdowns and just four interceptions. Those aren’t eye-popping numbers, but proof there’s potential there. 

The Vikings have something to work with and the best thing for McCarthy is he has solid weapons in Justin Jefferson and Addison to throw to. This should be an exciting season for him and we’ll finally get to see how talented McCarthy can be in the NFL.

If Kevin O’Connell was able to get what he did out of Darnold, he should have no problem helping McCarthy succeed in his first NFL season.