Report: 'Expectation' is J.J. McCarthy will declare for NFL Draft, decision to come in 'upcoming days'

In an NFL Draft filled with quarterback talent, two of the next dominoes to fall are playing in Monday’s national championship. Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. and Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy will square off at NRG Stadium in Houston, hoping to end their seasons with a title.

Now out of eligibility, Penix is most likely off to the draft. For McCarthy, though, he still has a year of eligibility if he wants it. A projected first-round pick, the Michigan quarterback has a decision to make with names such as Penix, Caleb Williams, Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels getting the hype ahead of April’s draft.

According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, NFL scouts are preparing for McCarthy to declare. However, he will make a final decision after the national title game.

“The biggest on-field storyline for Michigan coming out of this game is going to be the future of JJ McCarthy,” Thamel said on College Football Live. “He’s obviously 26-1 as a starter, and win or lose tonight, there’s a feeling that he may not be able to do much more at Michigan. NFL evaluators are operating under the expectation that McCarthy will come out. He’ll make the decision in the upcoming days.”

McCarthy finished 10th in the Heisman Trophy voting this year as he helped lead Michigan to a 14-0 record heading into Monday’s game. He has 2,851 passing yards and 22 touchdowns along with 171 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the ground. Now, he has the Wolverines on the doorstep of a national championship.

All the while, the NFL hype has been building. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. recently put JJ McCarthy at No. 23 on his latest Big Board released earlier this week. Matt Miller also projected him to go No. 7 overall in his pre-CFP mock draft last month.

Prior to the Rose Bowl, Jim Harbaugh said he thought about starting the NFL conversation with McCarthy. However, his quarterback kept his focus on beating Alabama — and Harbaugh thinks McCarthy is more than ready for the next level.

“Oh yeah, I think he’s NFL-ready,” Harbaugh said, via The Wolverine’s Anthony Broome. “He said wanted to just wait, play the [Rose Bowl] game with single track mind, one track mind. I love it. Let’s keep doing that because that’s what’s got us here.”

“We’ll just stay in the here and now. See if we can’t dominate this day. But yeah, I can’t lie and say I don’t think he’s NFL-ready. I very much think he’s NFL-ready.”