Vikings Rookie QB J.J. McCarthy Expected To Undergo Surgery: Report

Minnesota Vikings rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy is reportedly expected to undergo knee surgery for a torn meniscus, which will determine how long he'll be sidelined, sources with knowledge of the situation confirmed to ESPN 's Adam Schefter on Tuesday (August 13).

"ESPN Sources: Vikings rookie first-round pick J.J. McCarthy is expected to be undergo knee surgery that will determine how much time he will be sidelined. McCarthy complained about knee soreness over the weekend, and underwent an MRI on Monday night," Schefter wrote on his X account.

"Here’s the key part about J.J. McCarthy’s knee surgery: A decision will be made at the time of his operation about whether his meniscus requires a trimming or a complete repair, which will determine the length of his recovery. They are two different timelines," Schefter wrote in another post shared less than an hour later.

McCarthy, 21, reported the soreness to medical officials on Monday prior to head coach Kevin O'Connell 's decision to rule him out of the team's night practice. The rookie quarterback threw for 188 yards, two touchdowns and one interception on 11 of 17 passing, while also recording 18 yards on two rushing attempts, during the Vikings' preseason win against the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday (August 10).

O'Connell removed McCarthy, who came in after starter Sam Darnold , from the game late in the third quarter after the rookie hit his set play count of 30 snaps.

"Out of precaution we're going to continue an evaluation on him and get some more testing done. [He is a] very important player, obviously, so we want to make sure we're smart before he participates, making sure we have a good understanding of where he's at," O'Connell said Monday via ESPN , later referring to McCarthy's situation as "some kind of routine soreness that a lot of guys after their first preseason game sometimes come in with, and it was something we wanted to be smart about."

McCarthy was selected by the Vikings at No. 10 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, three months after leading the Michigan Wolverines to a College Football Playoff National Championship. The 21-year-old threw for 6,226 yards, 49 touchdowns and 11 interceptions on 482 of 713 passing during his collegiate career.