For the Minnesota Vikings, it's been a roller coaster ride with quarterback J.J. McCarthy running the show.
There have been moments where McCarthy takes over the fourth quarter and helps the Vikings win impressive games. Other moments show a young and inexperienced second-year quarterback who is still trying to figure things out, but does it all fall on him, or is his head coach, Kevin O'Connell, holding him back?
The Athletic's Alec Lewis wrote about some of the struggles with McCarthy in his four starts at quarterback. Lewis indicated that, based on the play calls that O'Connell is making, he may not necessarily trust his young signal caller to bomb the ball down the field.
" The 2025 team is not built to play from behind. To do that, you have to have a consistent dropback passing game. Right now, the Vikings don't.
O'Connell hasn't explicitly stated this, but the film seems to suggest that the Vikings want to limit second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy from having to make big-time throws into traffic over the middle of the field. It's a sensible approach, but one that requires an elite level of early-down efficiency.
That's why a greater reliance on the run game is so important. It's also why the five false starts Sunday in first-and-10 situations against the Baltimore Ravens were so painful."
Should Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell let J.J. McCarthy rip it on the field?
Last season, the Vikings seemed to be in a much better position in the passing game with Sam Darnold than J.J. McCarthy, as O'Connell had more trust in his veteran. Darnold has more air yards per reception in 2024 (8.8) than McCarthy has this season (7.5).
The key aspect with O'Connell is that he has placed more trust in Darnold due to his improved decision-making, which is something McCarthy has been working on. Darnold only had 10 passes batted down in 17 starts with the Vikings last year, but McCarthy has had nine in his four starts. Also, Darnold threw the ball away more with 29 and had 13 interceptions. McCarthy only has three throwaways and has thrown six interceptions.
From O'Connell's perspective, he is trying to protect his young quarterback from making too many mistakes on the field. The fewer turnovers they have, the better their chances of winning games.
With that being said, McCarthy has lacked the chance to throw deep ball passes. Their best receiver, Justin Jefferson, had his longest reception in the 27-19 loss to the Baltimore Ravens at only 11 yards. Most of the big plays the Vikings have had are coming after the catch.
If O'Connell wants any shot at his team making the postseason with the Vikings now in last place in the NFC North, he's going to have to trust McCarthy to throw it longer. Otherwise, Minnesota will be left out of the postseason, and questions will arise about McCarthy's ability to be a starting quarterback in the NFL.