Before they selected J.J. McCarthy with the No. 10 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings were viewed by many as one of the best landing spots for a rookie quarterback for a variety of reasons, including the presence of head coach Kevin O'Connell.
So when McCarthy was drafted by the Vikings, he knew his chances to succeed in the league were already going to be higher than some of the other quarterbacks who were also selected in the opening round of the 2024 draft.
Recently, more proof popped up that re-enforces the fact that the former Michigan signal-caller couldn't have asked for a better NFL team to end up with than Minnesota.
Clip featuring Kevin O'Connell and Anthony Richardson more proof that Minnesota Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy has high chance for NFL success
On Thursday, a clip was shared by the NFL's official account on X that showed O'Connell giving Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson some incredible words of encouragement.
.@Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell had some words of encouragement for @GVOaant ❤️ pic.twitter.com/TaXW9dFaMx
— NFL (@NFL) November 7, 2024
For those who are unable to view the clip, this is what the Vikings head coach told Richardson following Minnesota's win over the Colts last weekend.
"Hey, do me a favor and remember something. You're a bad dude, and you're going to play a long time in this league.
Go to work every day. Good things will happen for you. I still believe in you. I know these guys do, Shane does too.
love you. Go to work."
Before Indianapolis took on the Vikings last Sunday, they made the decision to bench Richardson after the young quarterback had only started 10 games since entering the league in 2023.
It's fair to assume his emotions were all over the place in the days following his benching, so for O'Connell to go out of his way to say what he said to him after Sunday's contest likely meant the world to the 22-year-old quarterback.
Minnesota's head coach could have just given Richardson a standard post-game handshake and wished him good luck in the future. But, instead, O'Connell saw their post-game exchange as an opportunity to help the Colts quarterback keep his chin up.
To know that this is who the Vikings have in charge of McCarthy's development is a great sign for the future of the organization.
O'Connell is going to give Minnesota's rookie quarterback everything he could possibly ask for in order to succeed in the NFL, including the confidence in himself to bounce back from adversity. If McCarthy is unable to be successful with the Vikings, it would be one of the biggest surprises in the history of the franchise.