Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy has missed three consecutive games after suffering a high-ankle sprain in Week 2, and a fourth could be looming based on the team’s first two practice reports of the week.
The good news for the Vikings is that their Day 1 starter is back on the grass practicing, something head coach Kevin O’Connell has harped on throughout his recovery period.
The troubling news is that McCarthy still isn’t practicing in full, leading to speculation that veteran Carson Wentz could once again start Sunday’s home game against the Philadelphia Eagles — and potentially beyond; Minnesota travels to face the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday Night Football in Week 8, and it could be tough for O’Connell to justify starting McCarthy in what will be an altered and scaled-down week of practice.
McCarthy confirmed to local reporters this week that his ankle is still at less than 100 percent. He also revealed that second opinions projected a recovery timeline of up to six weeks.
J.J. McCarthy on his right ankle: “It’s getting there. I wouldn’t say it’s 100 percent.” He said if it’s up to him, he’d play, “but we’ve got to be smart and understand there’s a lot of things that go on. I’m just going to do what I’m told and try to get better.”
— Ben Goessling (@BenGoessling) October 15, 2025
McCarthy said… pic.twitter.com/0McixjQsW0
We’re currently at the 4.5-week mark for McCarthy, who injured his ankle on Sept. 14 in the Vikings' loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
So if the team knew all along that he could be out until Week 9 at Detroit, why not utilize injured reserve to avoid the now rampant Wentz-McCarthy discourse, and gain an extra spot on the 53-man roster?
Minnesota Vikings had one clear reason to keep QB J.J. McCarthy off injured reserve
The Vikings obviously had the option of placing McCarthy on IR, with a designation to return. It’s fair for fans to question the decision now, given O’Connell’s obvious frustration with what this storyline has become.
Minnesota had multiple reasons to take an alternate route with McCarthy, with one factor being the team’s bad injury luck over the first six weeks of 2025.
Teams can utilize short-term IR a maximum of eight times per season, and the Vikings have already used three of theirs on fullback C.J. Ham, linebacker Blake Cashman, and edge Tyler Batty; they have three more obvious candidates to return off IR in center Ryan Kelly and running backs Aaron Jones and Ty Chandler.
We’re only a third of the way through the season, so it makes sense that the Vikings would want to hold onto their final two short-term IR spots, especially with McCarthy’s initial timeline leaving wiggle room for a quicker return coming out of the bye week.
The other reason — and the one that clearly fits O’Connell’s agenda — is that a player on IR is not permitted to practice with the team until he misses a minimum of four games (not including bye weeks).
Even if the Vikings placed McCarthy on IR retroactively, starting with their Week 3 game against the Bengals, they wouldn’t be able to open his practice window until after Sunday's Eagles game.
Again, that’s not ideal, as Minnesota plays on TNF next week, and McCarthy wouldn’t have access to the on-field reps he would need to get ready.
Based on this week's practice reports and McCarthy’s own admission to feeling less than 100 percent, it feels like a long shot for him to suit up this week.
Every physical team rep is important right now for the 22-year-old, though, and avoiding injured reserve at least gives him a chance to play in the Chargers game, with Week 9 against the Lions in Detroit the target date to circle (assuming he's ruled out for the Eagles game).