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J.J. McCarthy draws comparison to NFC North QB in latest scouting notes

Anthony Broomeby:Anthony Broome•09/12/23•

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Michigan QB J.J. McCarthy
© Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Michigan Wolverines have transformed into a bit of a pass-first offense through the first two weeks of the season thanks to the play of junior quarterback J.J. McCarthy. McCarthy is 58-for-65 for 558 yards and five touchdowns so far this season, and the ball has rarely touched the ground.

He was already firmly on 2024 NFL Draft boards heading into the season, and even with the caveats applied for level of competition through two non-conference games, draftniks across the country are taking notice of his play.

RELATED: Is J.J. McCarthy on track to be Michigan’s best quarterback ever?

In a scouting notebook released by ESPN this week, analyst Matt Miller said that an NFL scout sees a comparison to a long-time NFL starter and former Michigan State Spartan.

“McCarthy was expected to have a very good stat line against UNLV, and he lived up to those expectations,” Miller wrote. “He started the day 11-of-11, including one particularly awesome throw between Cover 2 defenders up the seam to Cornelius Johnson. A scout for an AFC team who was watching the game texted me that McCarthy is ‘a better moving Kirk Cousins,’ a compliment to his efficient and accurate style of play. McCarthy carves up defenses with touch and timing, and he did so Saturday with 22-of-25 passing for 278 yards, two touchdowns and an QBR of 96.1. He stacks up as a late first-rounder on my board and is climbing in the race for QB3 behind Caleb Williams and Drake Maye.”

Pro Football Focus also took notice of McCarthy’s showing in Week 2, noting that he has shown improvements to his game and that steps have been taken to unlock the best version of himself.

“With all due respect to East Carolina and UNLV, McCathy’s competition, to this point, has not been to his team’s level,” PFF’s Trevor Sikkema wrote. “Nonetheless, he has still been very impressive through his first two games.

“He has not been pressured much, just nine dropbacks under pressure, but he has earned a 91.5 passing grade with one big-time throw, no turnover-worthy plays and an 87.3% adjusted completion percentage. His traits have also popped, displaying NFL arm talent. We’re waiting to see how he deals with pressure against some better competition, but even what we’ve seen so far looks like a much more poised and confident version of McCarthy from what we saw last year.”

McCarthy will have to flash his potential in bigger games against stronger opponents, but he has essentially checked all the boxes early on. He and his Michigan teammates get the chance to take that next step this weekend against when Bowling Green comes to Ann Arbor for the non-conference finale. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET with Big Ten Network on the broadcast.

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