It might be a while before the Vikings are ready to put J.J. McCarthy under center

Even though Minnesota Vikings fans will probably want J.J. McCarthy to start games for the team as soon as humanly possible, that may not be in the cards for the front office and coaching staff. According to ESPN's Kevin Seifert, every quarterback the Vikings considered drafting had a personalized development plan in place, one where they needed to hit certain benchmarks to play.

McCarthy may have a high floor, but many draft experts questioned his ceiling at the next level. I would say it is a finite one, as McCarthy could be the elevated version of Brock Purdy. You can win a lot of games with that type of quarterback, one who is cool, calm and collected that plays a cerebral game behind the line of scrimmage. Then again, how many picks will Sam Darnold need to throw?

Here is an excerpt from Seifert's article on ESPN.com about McCarthy from over the long weekend.

“The Vikings will follow an individualized development plan they created for each of the QBs they considered drafting, one that requires McCarthy to hit specific benchmarks and gives coach Kevin O'Connell full authority to make the timing decision.”

McCarthy may be more pro-ready than the Vikings think, as illustrated by his tenure over at Michigan.

Let's discuss when the Vikings should look to pivot off Darnold in favor of their new first-round pick.

Minnesota Vikings to keep J.J. McCarthy on the bench, at least for now

Not until we see the NFL schedule release can we decide when the right time to insert McCarthy into the starting lineup over Darnold will be. If McCarthy does enough in training camp to beat out Darnold for the QB1 spot, that would be preferrable. This is because Minnesota actually has a chance to compete for an NFC Wild Card berth this year. They are not a bottom-four team in their conference.

While I agree that it doesn't serve the Vikings to just hand the starting job over to McCarthy, this isn't a dog and pony show. I don't really need to see head coach Kevin O'Connell directing traffic at the Westminster Dog Show, as McCarthy masterfully guides his way through every hoop and around every barrel. I know that the guy can play, and I also know that Darnold is an inherently reckless player.

Overall, I trust O'Connell's judgment more than most head coaches in his situation. He is a former NFL quarterback after all. I have long said Minnesota was the best landing spot for any first-round quarterback. Whoever went to the Vikings was going to be put into a position to have great long-term success. The roster is not one of bare bones. Put McCarthy out there so he can find Justin Jefferson.

It would not shock me to see McCarthy starting games by early October, no matter the NFL schedule.