Minnesota Vikings HC on selecting J.J. McCarthy: 'Checked all the boxes, and then some'
The Michigan Wolverines 2024 NFL Draft efforts this weekend are headlined by quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who went No. 10 overall to the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday night. The team is over the moon about getting its quarterback of the future without having to mortgage a ton of draft capital, which was speculated during the process.
McCarthy was introduced to the Minnesota media on Friday, and his new head coach Kevin O’Connell spoke about him as a player during ESPN’s NFL Draft broadcast on Saturday afternoon.
“It was great having him in the building yesterday and the feeling of knowing he’s part of that quarterback room to really grow and develop and be that quarterback of the future feels great,” O’Connell said. “The relationship I’ve built with JJ through the process is one where we’re both excited to really get to work together.”
Minnesota needed a franchise quarterback in the worst way after losing Kirk Cousins to free agency to the Atlanta Falcons. McCarthy wound up being the fifth quarterback off the board, and many analysts still question his ability to operate in an NFL offense.
O’Connell things the Michigan star is well-prepared for what comes next in his career.
“The confidence came from a process of really going through film study and the opportunity to get on campus with him for a full day in Ann Arbor and really try to dive into who he is as a player and where he’s at in his development,” O’Connell explained. “And ultimately confirm all the intangibles that I felt really strongly about.
“Specifically from a film-study standpoint, what I don’t think JJ gets enough credit for is winning downs, where it’s great that you run the ball, but in our game in the NFL and the level JJ was at, you don’t get to sustain offense like that without converting the big-time third downs. 3rd and 7 plus, he was fantastic, which was a down that makes or breaks our ability to win football games each and every Sunday. He was great in the redzone where you saw him had to thread the needle and make some tight-window throws. In the two minute situations, when he had to take his team down and score points and give themselves an opportunity to win national championships, JJ checked all those boxes and then some. That was a big part of it.”
An interesting quirk of the draft is a Michigan and Alabama Rose Bowl reunion in Minnesota. The Vikings used their second first round pick on EDGE Dallas Turner, who was part of the infamous trick play in the Rose Bowl, delivering a huge hit on McCarthy as he completed the ball downfield to Roman Wilson.
“I actually watched that play with both of those guys yesterday,” O’Connell said. “First and foremost, I played the position and no coach ever trusted me to catch a ball like that and have to deal it the way JJ did in that moment. Seeing Dallas close a lot of ground in a hurry and put that hit on JJ, I said that’s the last time that will ever happen between the two of these guys.”
McCarthy, who was 27-1 as a starter at Michigan, threw for 2,991 yards with 22 touchdowns and 4 interceptions this season for the Maize and Blue, completing 240-of-332 (72.3%) of his passes. One of the bigger knocks on him during the draft process has been Michigan’s lack of consistent passing success, but he has never focused on that.
“Stats, for me, wasn’t the big thing,” McCarthy said. at the NFL Combine. “All I cared about was being the best teammate I could be. Being the best quarterback I could be, whatever is asked of me. The only stat I cared about was winning, and we did pretty good in that category.”
