Strib: JJM needs support more than competition

purplefaithful wrote:

This week we learned that Kevin O’Connell is a master of the time-space continuum, and that ESPN will be linking Aaron Rodgers and the Vikings in 2527, when AI Adam Schefter will be claiming that the Virtual Vikings are considering signing AI Rodgers to help them win their first Intergalactic Bowl.

Asked at the NFL scouting combine if he considers J.J. McCarthy a franchise quarterback, O’Connell said, “A lot of those feelings are still the same. It’s just the timeline is in a different place for all of us than it was [in 2024].”

Yes. The timeline has advanced two years. To 2026. Thanks for the update.

O’Connell, the Vikings head coach, usually lets you know what he’s thinking, even while trying to avoid creating national headlines. What do his latest comments mean? That he doesn’t want to give up on McCarthy, but he doesn’t want to be completely dependent on McCarthy, either.

In that light, I’d like to discuss Sam Darnold.

Darnold is the reigning Super Bowl champion quarterback and a warning to any team eager to give up on a talented first-round draft pick.

You could tell he was headed for postseason glory by the way he performed in his last four regular-season games for the Seattle Seahawks.

In those four games, he produced seven touchdowns (rushing and passing combined) and two interceptions while completing 64% of his passes. He ran 14 times for 61 yards and was sacked seven times as his team went 4-0.

Sorry to deceive you.

Those are McCarthy’s stats over his last four regular-season games.

Darnold’s numbers over the same span: Three total touchdowns, three interceptions, 16 rushes for 23 yards, 10 sacks, a completion percentage of 67 and a 4-0 record.

Darnold had the better offensive line, running game and overall roster, yet McCarthy outperformed him down the stretch. And if the Vikings had hired a better backup quarterback, McCarthy probably would have started a playoff game in his first season as an NFL starter.

The more I look at McCarthy’s body of work, the more I see late-season improvement, high-end talent and a quarterback who, like Darnold, should not be cast aside because of early-career struggles.

The more I look at these numbers, the more I think the Vikings should be in search of the best possible backup quarterback, not someone who will “compete with” McCarthy for the starting job.

McCarthy doesn’t need internal competition. He needs to be the Vikings’ top priority.

Another McCarthy moment I can’t look away from: If the Vikings had tackled the Bears’ kickoff returner on Nov. 16 at U.S. Bank Stadium, the Vikings would have made the playoffs, and McCarthy would have been credited with another fourth-quarter comeback victory. He also would have finished the season 5-1 against the NFC North, including a sweep of the division champion Bears.

If the Vikings gave up on McCarthy right now, they’d go into the draft hoping to find a winning quarterback with arm strength and mobility. 

They’d be looking for someone like McCarthy, circa 2024.

Remember, the overriding theme of NFL analysis over the last two seasons has been that teams fail young quarterbacks more often than young quarterbacks fail teams. That ditching a talented young quarterback can be an act of self-destruction.

I like young McCarthy more than I liked young Sam Darnold, or young Bryce Young, or young Mac Jones, or young Baker Mayfield.

As the Vikings enter free agency and draft season and decide how to fill out their quarterback room, I hope they do nothing that could slow the progress of their own promising young quarterback.

Forget Aaron Rodgers, who hasn’t won a playoff game since 2021 and will turn 43 in December.

Sign Kirk Cousins or Jimmy Garoppolo as a backup who would win games if called upon, then get to work on making McCarthy the player he can be.

Oooooeee, Jim out here whippin' some ass! Laying down some logic. Not all curmudgeons built the same way apparently.

medaille wrote:


I kind of see us potentially adding two QBs.  I think we could see something like this:
• JJM
• Trade a 5th for Anthony Richardson
• Bring in a veteran QB like Derek Carr or whoever is not a shit ton of money.
• Keep Brosmer

I think this would give you two kind of high ceiling guys and a high floor guy, and you probably move Brosmer to practice squad once we get out of camp and have to trim the roster down.

Also what keeps teams from hiring 20 NFL rejects for like $40k each and just have them there to help their developmental QBs actually develop.  I don’t really understand why QB1 gets all the reps, and development kind of stops for QB2/3 once the season starts, when they could just hire some low cost guys that aren’t on the roster to help them get more reps.

I'm not sure in what parallel NFL universe this would ever, ever happen. IMO its makes little sense in so many ways.
[hr]

MaroonBells wrote:

 They include testing Justin Jefferson’s patience another year and wasting prime years of a very good roster. Jobs are on the line.

So sure, bring in Cousins or Jimmy G, if those are his flavors of choice. But he says this like it’s some kind of radical idea no one has thought about.

The Vikings won 9 games last year, .5 out of a playoff spot and just 2 behind the NFCN leader...who they should've beaten twice. If Jefferson wants to win a Superbowl, patience is what he's going to need, lol. Who are we signing this year at QB to come and win a Superbowl?? THIS year? Nobody. So why wouldn't you invest in McCarthy? I mean, IMO, there can be other nuances to the strategy but the main point should be exactly what Souhan lays out. I mean some seem to feel apparently that the Vikings won 9 games despite JJ, lol. 6-4 as a starter. How many game winning drives?

greediron wrote:


Once KOC got out of his head, JJ looked like what we all hoped for.  He has the grit/moxie for the position, has the talent and just needs some seasoning.

This^. Once somebody dropped 'mechanics' out of his vocabulary, JJ played a bunch better. Save the mechanics lessons for offseason, like I'm sure he's doing right now in California with John Beck.

Zanary wrote:


I was VERY glad when Brez sounded more supportive than KOC did this week, because it seemed like he was in full political-speech mode: giving answers without taking any strong positions

The terms is "Dawg", and the team just needs to train him right.

But this is how KOC has to be: acting like he's truly all about making QB1 competitive. There'll be less hugs this offseason and more direct professionalism by KOC toward JJM....when he shows the improvement and continued mastery of the position and is undoubtedly QB1, then KOC will ramp it down a bit. The whole organization knows that JJM is by far the best option, mostly because he's shown those qualities. Just needs to stay healthy, contrary to what some of the tripe has been online from the fanboy aggregators, that is really their only and main concern. Not improvement, that is expected.

He's 100% a dawg. Biggest dawg this team has ever had outside of Joe Kapp.

pattersaur wrote:

CAN I GET AN AMEN

purplefaithful wrote:

Ha!

This all just goes to show how in-experienced us Vikings/fans are with rook QB's...

And the best thing they could do for JJM outside of a healthy Darrisaw??

Get a true #1 tail-back who can keep D's honest!

A little birdie told me that's coming...the plan was always for this year. But they also do like Mason.

Never forget ;)

https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/we-knew-he-had-dog-him-inside-j-j-mccarthys-debut-comeback-win
[hr]

MaroonBells wrote:


I don’t believe that at all. Like you say, Vikings won 9 games, and were a half game away from the playoffs, despite a level of QB play this team hasn’t seen in decades. I don’t know that we’ve EVER seen it that bad. 2200 yards, 18 TDs and 21 INTs is what we got from our QB room last year. Justin Jefferson caught two (TWO!) TDs on the year. How many games do we win if the QB play is just average? As bad as Geno Smith was last year on a terrible Vegas team, we’re still talking much better numbers than what we got, same is true for Bryce Young, Tua, Shough and Dart.

So sure, keep developing the kid. He showed some nice progress toward the end of the season, but we have to bring in another QB who can give us “baseline QB” play if JJ falters or gets hurt again.

I respect your opinion, MB. I like a lot of your takes. Just an agree to disagree here. You are talking stats vs. situational play and that's where JJ was playing well. He tended to group his bad play in just a few games, lol...and yeah it was rough.

medaille wrote:


What doesn't make sense to you?

Your whole concept around how NFL teams should handle the QB position. And what you'd like the team to do at the QB position this year: JJM, AR and Derek Carr, lol? Where are the reps coming from? More reps, better play....but you want to split them up. The reason the HC spends 99% of his time during the regular season with QB1 is because he's trying to win ball games...and his focus has to be on the guy that's starting because there's a whole gameplan to learn week to week against different opponents. I mean, you have to realize this right?

greediron wrote:


I am not too worried about the durability.  Some of it is just fluke IMO.  I think experience is the biggest factor, slow down a bit, let the plays happen.

Agreed.

Looks like Schefty is saying Minnesota wants Wentz back.....I think at this point, Silly Season has every available QB in Minnesota.
[hr]

medaille wrote:


It sounds like what you are saying is that having depth is bad, because more depth means your starters play less good.

The limitation isn’t in how many midweek reps are available.  The limitation is that borderline QB starters make $20-30M a year and teams don’t want to pay that for a backup usually, and borderline QB starters don’t want to waste a season of their career being a backup when they could be starting for a team that has zero QB options.

I don’t think that having JJM/Vet Backup/Brosmer is that much different than JJM/Vet Backup/Richardson in terms of how many reps QB1/QB2/QB3 gets midweek during the season, except your QB3 just has a higher ceiling and costs more.  Like we brought Daniel Jones in house and it didn’t screw up our ability to give Darnold enough reps and Daniel Jones got enough out of the deal to make it worth coming here.

I mean, I guess anything is possible? But this is highly unlikely IMO. I mean, if they keep Wentz does that even count, lol. I guess we'll know soon.

comet52 wrote:

Just chalk it up to silly season... or not  :rolleyes:

Sources: Vikings Ready to Move on From JJ McCarthy
Tony Pauline

Feb 28, 2026 | 12:56 PM CST

The Minnesota Vikings are quietly exploring an exit strategy for 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy, according to multiple league sources. That’s just one of several league-shaking rumors emerging from the Combine, where contract standoffs and planned spending sprees are setting the stage for a chaotic offseason.

The consensus opinion here at the Combine is that the Vikings are in the market for a new starting quarterback. In fact, a source tells me the team is really down on quarterback J.J. McCarthy and is ready to move on from their 2024 first-round pick. The team will bring in another signal caller to compete and eventually replace McCarthy, who was the 10th selection of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Speculation about McCarthy’s future with the organization has been rampant since the end of the season, his second disappointing year with the Vikings. After a rookie season spent on injured reserve, McCarthy played in just 10 games in 2025 after dealing with a high-ankle sprain and other ailments. He completed under 60% of his passes and threw 11 TDs and 12 interceptions.

To make matters worse, Bo Nix, who was selected just two picks after McCarthy, has had two successful seasons, culminating in leading the Broncos to the AFC title game this season.

https://www.essentiallysports.com/nfl-active-news-sources-vikings-ready-to-move-on-from-jj-mccarthy-colts-alec-pierce-tag-plan-stalls-jets-eye-defensive-spending-spree/

This part of the year that is always just such a bore until FA actually opens is lying season. So obviously to sum things up: Minnesota can't be 'all in' on JJ's development AND ready to move on from him as we've seen both ends of the rumor spectrum and everything between. So somebody is lying for engagement. Happens every year. lol, I guess we'll have to wait to be sure who that is. But I'm wondering what might make more sense? You know, just that good ol' fashioned common sense thing we used to have.  :rolleyes:

MAD GAINZ wrote:


Exactly.  Who you gonna believe on these scoops?  Tony Pauline or Schefty?  One is ultra-connected and the other...  hasn't been relevant for a long time.

Tom P. and Dianna R. also echoed that the team is all in on JJ and his development as a starter for Minnesota. But 'Matt Coller' said the team is looking for a new starter, lol. Always something out there to validate someone's narrative....I mean there is a Flat Earth Society. ;)