JJ McCarthy injury update: Kevin O'Connell reveals Viking QB's expected status vs. Commanders

Minnesota Vikings quarterback JJ McCarthy is expected to start Sunday’s Week 14 home contest against the Washington Commanders. McCarthy is symptom free and should clear concussion protocol this week, head coach Kevin O’Connell said Monday.

“We’ll see how he does tomorrow,” McCarthy said. “Our goal is he clears and he can have a good week of practice and have an opportunity to play next week.”

McCarthy was sidelined for Week 13 against the Seattle Seahawks. That allowed Max Brosmer, an undrafted rookie out of Minnesota, to make his first NFL start. The Vikings were shutout 26-0 and had just 162 total yards. Brosmer completed 19-of-30 passes for 126 yards and four interceptions.

Minnesota has now scored six points in its last eight quarters of play. They have the league’s No. 29 ranked offense. It’s quite the fall from 2024, when they had a top 12 unit in football. Of course, that was an offense led by quarterback Sam Darnold, who signed with the Seattle Seahawks this past offseason. He won the revenge game Sunday while the Vikings failed to get in the end zone.

JJ McCarthy, Vikings offense struggling in 2025

McCarthy, to this point, has struggled. The 2024 No. 10 overall pick has thrown for 929 yards, six touchdowns and 10 interceptions on 54.1% passing. McCarthy has missed half the season with a high ankle sprain and the concussion. He suffered a knee injury last preseason, forcing him to miss the entirety of his rookie campaign.

The Vikings return home Sunday after back-to-back disastrous performances on the road. Typically, Minnesota’s home stadium is an advantage. Is O’Connell expecting a more negative reaction given the state of the offense?

“I understand how passionate our fans are and how much they love the Minnesota Vikings and that is not lost on me [for] one moment,” O’Connell said, via the team’s official website. “If anything, you feel a total, complete obligation to our team, first and foremost – everybody that puts so much hard work in at this organization – but it’s not lost on me how important our fans are to us and how much they mean to us from an energy standpoint and the support we do get.

“And you want to provide them with reasons to cheer and reasons to be excited about their team. And [it’s] not always the easiest thing to do when you’re kind of having to transform what you are in your current state as an offense. But also, it’s about winning football games.”