What O’Connell learned about McCarthy amid lost rookie season

Earlier tales detailed how Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell, quarterbacks coach Josh McCown and different members of the workers included quarterback and 2024 first-round draft decide J.J. McCarthy in Saturday sport plan conferences as McCarthy spent his whole rookie season recovering from the full meniscus restore
he wanted final summer season. 

Throughout a current chat with Kevin Seifert of ESPN, O’Connell touched upon how his experiences with McCarthy all through the 2024 marketing campaign helped Minnesota decide that the 22-year-old shall be able to function Sam Darnold’s full-time alternative this September.

“I simply needed to provide him a platform with me,” O’Connell mentioned about working with McCarthy final season. “Possibly it was soccer someday. Possibly it was no soccer. My time may be very onerous to search out throughout the season, however I simply needed to ensure that we bought collectively. The one factor I discovered about him in these conferences is he had nice questions, and that validated that he was receiving and getting one thing out of that point. And as I’ve instructed him, it would not actually assure you something, however when you’re combating the combat every day of rising throughout the system, he would be capable to depend on a few of what we did collectively.”

As just lately as early January, it appeared possible that Minnesota would wish to maintain onto Darnold after he guided the membership to a 14-2 document. Nonetheless, he then struggled by way of a pair of back-to-back losses that ended the Vikings’ season, together with a disheartening 27-9 wild-card playoff defeat in opposition to the Los Angeles Rams.

There isn’t any indication the Vikings got here all that near re-signing Darnold earlier than he acquired a three-year, $100.5M contract from the Seattle Seahawks that Seattle may escape as quickly as subsequent offseason. In the meantime, O’Connell spent some time this previous spring kicking across the thought of Minnesota beginning future Corridor of Famer Aaron Rodgers over McCarthy later this 12 months. The Vikings as a substitute handed on providing Rodgers a deal earlier than he joined the Pittsburgh Steelers in June. 

“I have never had an harm like this that sat me down for thus lengthy,” McCarthy acknowledged forward of his first coaching camp serving as Minnesota’s QB1.”And I used to be very grateful for the chance that I needed to actually get a head begin on the psychological aspect of the sport. Getting on the identical web page with [O’Connell] has been superior. Final season, seeing how he calls the video games and the whole lot like that, in addition to the intricate persona traits of the fellows on the crew — and him having the ability to feed those who assist strengthen the general group and assist strengthen them individually — and be there for them when some issues aren’t going their method.”

As of Monday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had McCarthy fifth among the many betting favorites at +850 odds to assert the Comeback Participant of the 12 months Award for the upcoming season. That very same outlet had the Vikings at +1300 odds to signify the NFC in Tremendous Bowl LX. 

If McCarthy meets or exceeds the expectations had for him by O’Connell, Minnesota followers may very well be in for a marketing campaign they will not quickly overlook.