The Minnesota Vikings won't have to pay J.J. McCarthy anytime soon, but that doesn't mean Brock Purdy's sizable extension means nothing to the NFC rivals. The fact is, Purdy's $53 million represents the ballooning price of quarterback salaries in the NFL. They now have three, four years at most, to figure out if they're willing to pay McCarthy top dollar.
Head coach Kevin O'Connell is a quarterback guru. He's got such cache that Caleb Williams would have done pretty much anything to come to Minnesota. His endorsement of McCarthy as worthy of a No. 10 overall pick means a whole lot.
Even so, we didn't get to see McCarthy as a rookie. Injury delayed his NFL progression by a year, shrinking his window to convince the Vikings that he's the guy.
He'd be in rare company if he pulled that off.
The Vikings haven't extended many QBs they've drafted
Tarvaris Jackson was the last Vikings quarterback who was drafted by Minnesota and signed a deal to stay beyond their rookie contract. And even that was just to back up Brett Favre.
The Vikings don't have a strong recent history of drafting and extending QBs. Kellen Mond didn't stick. Teddy Bridgewater didn't stick. Christian Ponder didn't stick.
With those players, it was fairly obvious they weren't worth top dollar. But the hope and belief is that McCarthy will be. First, he's got to prove it, because Kirk Cousins proved Minnesota won't extend a quarterback for big money unless they're sure he can play.
It's not clear how much of the Vikings' knowledge of Cousins' injury went into their decision not to bring him back. Either way, they weren't willing to pay him $45 million per year. That's a QB who'd already proven he could consistently put up 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns in a season. Last year, no quarterback under the age of 27 reached either of those marks. Among the first year starters, Bo Nix came closest with 3,775 yards and 29 touchdowns.
JJ McCarthy could face many of the same questions as Bro
McCarthy will get his first shot in 2025. He's the guy, no Sam Darnold to hold his place and no Aaron Rodgers to delay his debut.
I'm not doubting that he can succeed, especially in a Kevin O'Connell offense. But he may face many of the same questions Purdy did: How much of your success was your playmakers? How much of your success was your system? How much are you really worth?
Nor will the contracts end with Purdy. CJ Stroud will get considerably more when his time comes. Other extensions will continue to reset the market. Suffice it to say, when the time comes to pay McCarthy, he'll cost far more than $53 million per year. If he doesn't make himself a slam dunk extension candidate, things could get interesting for both the team and player.