https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6612507...-mccarthy/

Alec Lewis
@alec_lewis

Pandemonium?

In Week 1?

You best believe it.

What it meant for the Vikings’ sideline to erupt like it did for J.J. McCarthy, and what the conversations were like as the QB ignited the thriller.

Impressed by Myles Price.  Only one game, but he definitely looks like our punt returner from here on out.  Great wiggle and vision.  Knew nothing about him before this game.  Another great UDFA by Kwesi.

Also impressed by Mason Jordan.  Knew he was a good player already, but he looks even better than I expected.  Great 1-2 punch.

Eric Wilson had a heck of a game.  Stud on special teams and stepped up on D when Cashman went down.

Obviously JJ too.  Took him a minute, but what a cannon.  That pass to Thielen for the 2 point conversion, tagged him right between the numbers.  Seemed like it surprised AT with that.  And the poise and leadership. 

Also that drive to get the FG before half, that was clutch! 

One game, but excited about the rest of the year!

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6610932...the-pulse/

"I can’t say enough about McCarthy and, by proxy, Minnesota coach Kevin O’Connell. The coach known as a QB whisperer took a broken, rattled McCarthy and turned him into a gritty veteran in one half. McCarthy, 22, led three touchdown drives in the fourth quarter, two via pass and one he ran in himself. It was arguably the most impressive performance of the weekend."  - Chris Branch, The Athletic.

In his NFL debut, McCarthy ignited a furious fourth-quarter comeback. Chicago and new coach Ben Johnson, meanwhile, showed they have a long way to go in the franchise's latest attempt at a rebuild:

https://www.si.com/nfl/jj-mccarthy-vikin...-fall-flat

"Johnson was a brilliant offensive coordinator with the Lions over the past three years, twice overseeing an attack ranked in the top three in yards per game. But on Monday, he was outcoached down the stretch by O’Connell, a more experienced hand who kept plugging despite nothing going right.

There will be better nights ahead for Williams and Johnson.

But this night belonged to McCarthy, who overcame a brutal moment to create a memorable one. "

'J.J. McCarthy’s awakening showed why the Vikings took this leap of faith':

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6612586...ack-bears/

“What we preach is that when it gets hard, when it gets really hard, lean in even more, and you’re going to figure it out. When you’re bringing along a young quarterback on the road in the NFC North, and the place is absolutely electric, you’ve got to find a way to weather the storm. As ugly as things may have looked during the first three quarters, O’Connell didn’t hate what he saw from McCarthy. He liked the young passer’s demeanor and the way McCarthy got the Vikings into the right protections, and into the “cans” that serve as alternate play calls in O’Connell’s scheme. “What I was most proud of,” O’Connell said, “is early on in the game, J.J. might have been one of the most poised players in the huddle.”

That wasn’t all O’Connell wanted to talk about afterward, however. He was frustrated at his team’s overall performance that preceded the final-quarter flurry, saying, “There are a thousand things we all can clean up, me included. Trust me, I could do with way less epic and more, just, 60 (cohesive) minutes. But there’s a lot that can come from moments like that where we just find a way.”

Get used to it. He's the antidote for the Viking's curse. Nothing but 219 lbs. of dawg. Don't say I didn't tell y'all.

I had a feeling that both the o and d needed to knock the rust off, so I  kept telling myself to calm down, things would come together.


Whew.

Maybe this is our guy?  He’s 22.  If everything went perfectly he could be our QB into the 2040s. Could you imagine not doing retreads like we’ve done since Fran?

My God.  That was awful, defense.