Michigan football QB J.J. McCarthy selected No. 10 overall by Minnesota Vikings in 2024 NFL Draft

Michigan Wolverines football quarterback J.J. McCarthy has been selected by the Minnesota Vikings No. 10 overall by the in the 2024 NFL Draft. The Vikings traded up one spot from No. 11 to No. 10, a pick that was originally possessed by the New York Jets. McCarthy is the first U-M player to be chosen this year and 10th first-round pick under head coach Jim Harbaugh, who’s now with the Los Angeles Chargers.

McCarthy is the first Michigan quarterback to be taken in the first round since Harbaugh was chosen by the Chicago Bears No. 26 overall in 1987. McCarthy is the third U-M signal-caller to land in the first round, joining Harbaugh and Forest Evashevski, the No. 10 overall pick to the Washington Redskins in 1941. Former Michigan quarterback George Ceithaml went off the board to the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1943 with the No. 19 overall pick, but that was in the third round.

He’s the first Michigan signal-caller to be drafted since Jake Rudock was selected by the Detroit Lions in the sixth round in 2016.

The 6-foot-3, 219-pounder is the fifth quarterback to be drafted this year, behind USC’s Caleb Williams (No. 1 to the Chicago Bears), LSU’s Jayden Daniels (No. 2 to the Washington Commanders), North Carolina’s Drake Maye (No. 3 to the New England Patriots) and Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. (No. 8 to the Atlanta Falcons).

“This [Minnesota Vikings] system provides answers for the quarterback,” ESPN analyst Louis Riddick said on the broadcast. “There’s nothing that a quarterback will come off the field and have a question about that [head coach Kevin O’Connell] can’t answer. And when you have a guy that has that kind of ability to make those kinds of plays, you’re not gonna have to provide too many solutions for him once you get him groomed.

“J.J. McCarthy is a fantastic prospect. No, Michigan didn’t rely on him and put games on his back week after week after week, but when they call on him, under pressure, get outside of the pocket, convert on third down, convert on fourth down, convert with your legs, make tough throws over the middle in tight windows, push the ball down the field — he can do it all. He just doesn’t have the volume of throws that some of these other guys have.

“And he won’t have to play right away in Minnesota. But if he earns it, think of the weapons he has to work with at wide receiver, offensive line and running back. It is all set for him.”

“The talent is there, but of all the guys that have been picked so far at the quarterback position, this is a gamble,” ESPN analyst Booger McFarland said. “The sample size just isn’t there like it is with the other guys. We’ve seen a plethora of throws and plethora of reps from the other guys, but we haven’t seen [as much from] J.J. McCarthy.

“When you talk about the National Football League being a projection and ‘what can you do for me going forward?’ this is the biggest risk.”

“J.J. McCarthy, we say he didn’t have to carry the team. It was [running back Blake Corum], the offensive line, the defense,” ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said. “But when he was stressed on third down and fourth down in that Alabama game, it was traditional old-school ball, that’s the way they played at Michigan. They didn’t live on bubble screens. He lived on passes between the hashes. It wasn’t gimmes, like a lot of these quarterbacks with those lofty stats. That’s not what J.J. did.”

On the Pat McAfee Show broadcast, former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said, “there’s not much to not like about J.J. McCarthy.

“One thing that’s a question is his weight,” Belichick said. “He weighed in at 202 and then 219, he’s somewhere in there. We’d like him at 219, not 202.

“But this guy’s got a quick release, he can get the ball out, he reads coverages well. He’s just got a lot more experience. And he plays under center — he’s not in the shotgun all the time, so he can play under center, play action passes, turn his back to the [defense].

“He’s got good ball security. I know he had two pick sixes against TCU in the championship game, but it’s 3rd and 10, he’s gonna protect the team. He’s not gonna look to turn the ball over.”

McCarthy impressed at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis this past winter. He ran a 6.82-second 3-cone drill (first among four quarterbacks) and 4.23-second 20-yard shuttle (tied first among four quarterbacks. He also went through a throwing session that prompted the following comment from NFL Network reporter Peter Schrager: “I got a text from an NFL evaluator, a very respected one, saying, ‘Of all these guys, McCarthy translates to the NFL the most.’ He had an outstanding day out here.”

The 21-year-old La Grange Park (Ill.) native was 27-1 as a starter, with that .964 win percentage standing as the best among college football quarterbacks since 1971. McCarthy is 65-3 since becoming a starting varsity high school player.

McCarthy is No. 1 in Michigan program history in the following categories: career completion percentage (67.6), career pass efficiency (160.5 rating), career touchdown-to-interception radio (4.5:1).

McCarthy ranks fourth in U-M history with 482 career completions, behind only Chad Henne (828), John Navarre (765) and Elvis Grbac (522). His 6,226 career passing yards check in sixth in the record book, trailing Henne (9,715), Navarre (9,254), Grbac (6,460), Devin Gardner (6,250) and Denard Robinson (6,250).

McCarthy was named first-team All-Big Ten and became Michigan’s first-ever winner of the Griese-Brees Big Ten Quarterback of the Year award this season. He completed 240 of his 332 passes (72.2 percent) for 2,991 yards and 22 touchdowns with 4 interceptions. He added 64 rushes for 202 yards and 3 scores.

McCarthy led the Maize and Blue to the Big Ten championship and College Football Playoff victories over Alabama (27-20 in overtime in the Rose Bowl) and Washington (34-13 in the title game in Houston). They also beat Ohio State, 30-24, their third-straight triumph over the hated rival that McCarthy revered as a youth.

Following the Rose Bowl, head coach Jim Harbaugh said McCarthy is the best college quarterback in program history.

He wasn’t eligible to be a team captain — only seniors and graduate students were — but McCarthy has been credited as being one of the Michigan team’s top leaders. Joining the program after the Wolverines hadn’t beaten Ohio State since 2011, won the Big Ten since 2004 and posted a 2-4 record in 2020, McCarthy and his class are 40-3 as Wolverines.

McCarthy won the starting quarterback battle over former Michigan signal-caller Cade McNamara early in the 2022 season. He opened the final 13 outings and led the Wolverines to the Big Ten title and College Football Playoff, where they fell to TCU in the Fiesta Bowl, 51-45. McCarthy threw two interceptions that were returned for touchdowns but also led Michigan back with 393 total yards and 3 touchdowns before falling short.

For the 2022 season, McCarthy connected on 208 of his 322 passes (64.6 percent) for 2,719 yards and 22 touchdowns with 5 interceptions.

Backing up McNamara in 2021, McCarthy was used as a running quarterback and second-stringer. He appeared in 11 games, completing 34 of 59 pass attempts for 516 yards with 5 touchdowns to 2 interceptions. Michigan won the Big Ten title, the first of three consecutive championships, finishing 12-2 with a CFP loss to Georgia.

A four-star recruit, McCarthy was the No. 47 overall player in the 2021 class, per the On3 Industry Ranking. He led IMG Academy to an 8-0 record as a senior, throwing 16 touchdowns and no picks. He spent his first three years of high school at Nazareth Academy in his hometown of La Grange Park, Ill. All told in his prep career, McCarthy threw for 7,905 yards and 94 touchdowns with 13 interceptions.