The Minnesota Vikings were one of the few teams around the NFL that looked to have a quarterback competition going on in training camp. The team lost veteran Kirk Cousins in free agency, as his signing with the Atlanta Falcons left a huge void in the offense.
To fill that void, the team signed Sam Darnold in free agency before using their first-round pick on J.J. McCarthy out of Michigan. Darnold was the starter heading into camp, but McCarthy was going to put pressure on him for the job.
His first NFL action was encouraging. The plan was for McCarthy to play 30 snaps and he did that, completing 11-of-17 passes for 188 yards. He tossed two touchdowns with one interception, adding two carries for 18 yards.
However, his status moving forward is up in the air. It was revealed that McCarthy injured his meniscus in the game and will have to undergo surgery.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell said that the injury occurred during the preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders. McCarthy did not share anything with the team until Monday when the injury was found.
The fate of McCarthty’s rookie season in the NFL now lies with the doctors who will do his surgery. The kind of meniscus operation he will undergo will determine if he will be able to return at some point in 2024 or if his first pro campaign is over before it begins.
If only a trim of the meniscus is necessary, McCarthy has a chance to get back on the field in 2024. Should doctors need to do a full repair, he could miss the entire season.
“That’s totally, totally a medical decision,” O’Connell said. “Certainly, what’s best for the long-term health of J.J. McCarthy will be the priority. I don’t have that answer and really won’t be a part of determining that answer. … I have total complete trust in our medical staff and also the people that will be performing the procedure.”
The quarterback competition in training camp is now over, as Darnold is the unquestioned starter moving forward. He had been dominating the snaps at practice already, but this cements his status as McCarthy was his only competition for the job.
“Sam’s had a really good camp and my confidence level in Sam is very, very high at this point,” O’Connell said, “and looking forward to seeing him continue his progression that we’ve had for him throughout the early part of camp into that first preseason game. … I’m really looking forward to Sam’s continued growth and success in the offense, and I know his teammates and the rest of the coaching staff have been really enthused by what Sam’s done.”
Hopefully, McCarthy is able to get back on the field at some point this season. It would benefit him greatly in terms of development so that he can get back to work, especially after he responded so positively after an early interception against the Raiders.
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