JJ McCarthy addresses Michigan's ups, downs on offense after hot start in National Championship

JJ McCarthy recognizes Michigan didn’t have their most consistent offensive performance against Washington, but it was enough to capture a national title.

The final score doesn’t tell the entire story, but McCarthy and his teammates got the last laugh over the Huskies in a 34-13 win. It looked like a rout early on, as Michigan raced out to a two-touchdown lead, but Michigan’s offense stalled after their hot start.

Speaking with the media afterwards, McCarthy evaluated the Michigan offense, explaining why the team never lost their confidence through their struggles.

“We started off really hot. Everything was clicking,” McCarthy said. “But I feel like we got to points in the game where we were beating ourselves. I was missing throws. I was missing some reads. And it just comes down to moving on to the next play, flushing the last play, and just staying in the present moment and just trying to attack one play at a time.

“The third-down run, I just saw it on film all week that they were going to give me an opportunity at some point. Being backed up like that, you don’t want to be sitting back in the end zone for too long. And I just saw the crease, the offensive line did a great job of making sure they didn’t shed those blocks, and the rest is history.”

Alas, JJ McCarthy didn’t have an amazing game last Monday, but he did enough to lead Michigan to a national title, and that’s all that matters to the Wolverines star.

Mel Kiper Jr. weighs NFL Draft grade for JJ McCarthy after CFP title game

Meanwhile. NFL Draft stock often changes based on how players perform on the biggest stages. And following Monday night’s marquee championship matchup, ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. evaluated the NFL Draft grade of the starting quarterback for the newly crowned national champion. 

“Greeny it’s been the case with JJ McCarthy really the last couple years, not having to carry that football team on his shoulders,” Kiper said to ‘Get Up’ host Mike Greenberg. “That’s a run-oriented team. Obviously the o-line, outstanding even without Zak Zinter their best offensive lineman out since the Ohio State game with the injury.” 

The Wolverines were not heavily reliant on McCarthy in their national championship win, running for a BCS and CFP championship record 303 yards versus Washington. 

McCarthy did contribute 31 yards on the ground and 140 yards in the air against the Huskies, ending the season with 2,991 passing yards, 202 rushing yards, and 25 total touchdowns. But his game-manager style of play in Michigan’s offense does come with pros and cons when evaluating him for the next level.

“Think about JJ McCarthy, 25 or fewer pass attempts in 10 games this year. Last 12 games threw only one interception, so he stays away from that. We remember the TCU game last year with the two pick-sixes, but overall his game management has been excellent,” Kiper said. “He just has not had that wow game, that wow performance that says I’m defined as a first round pick. He hasn’t had that yet.”

On3’s Kaiden Smith contributed to this article.