Minnesota Vikings quarterback JJ McCarthy impresses with two-touchdown NFL debut

JJ McCarthy put together quite the performance in his NFL debut with the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday. The first-round pick was the only quarterback on his team to throw for a touchdown, tossing for two scores and finishing 11-of-17 passing with 188 yards as Minnesota beat the Raiders by a score of 24-23.

It wasn’t the best start for McCarthy, who entered the game on the second series and threw an interception by his third pass. He ended the first half without any touchdowns as the Vikings trailed 20-7 at the break.

However, the Michigan product would pick things up in the second half to help get his team back in the game. He quickly led the Vikings on a touchdown drive to open the third quarter, connecting with Trishton Jackson on a 45-yard score that fell into the receivers hands in stride.

McCarthy scored again on the very next drive when he found Trent Sherfield for a 33-yard touchdown. That gave Minnesota its first lead of the game and would end McCarthy’s day as Jaren Hall entered to close out the fourth quarter.

Minnesota would go on to win 24-23 after a field goal from fellow rookie Will Reichard as time expired.

The Vikings have yet to announce a starting quarterback for the 2024 season, but Sam Darnold got the nod on Saturday. He played only the opening series, going 4-of-8 for 59 yards passing. McCarthy certainly made a case for himself with the way he played after Darnold exited the game.

McCarthy spent the past two seasons as the starting quarterback at Michigan and led the Wolverines to a national championship this past year. He threw for 2,991 yards and 22 touchdowns to only four interceptions while also rushing for 202 yards and three scores. McCarthy attended Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy prior to matriculating to Michigan. As a senior, he passed for 1,440 yards, 16 touchdowns and no interceptions.

McCarthy also showed off his rushing ability Saturday to finish with two carries for 18 yards. His passer rating of 116.8 was the highest of any quarterback from either team in the game.

Given that the Vikings used the No. 10 overall pick on him this offseason, making one of six quarterbacks taken in the first round of the NFL Draft, JJ McCarthy figures to be a big part of their future. We’ll see whether that comes immediately this season or if Minnesota opts to give him more time to develop before rolling him out as starter.

The Vikings play their next preseason game on Aug. 17 against the Browns.