After missing the 2024 season with a torn meniscus, McCarthy is expected to open the season as the QB1 for the Vikings. We view him as a mid-QB2 with upside that comes from his talented corps of pass catchers and the offensive genius of Kevin O'Connell. He could also provide some production with his legs if he's fully healthy and trusts that knee. O'Connell has regularly produced Fantasy starters at quarterback and McCarthy has the talent to continue that trend. Still, McCarthy is just 22 years old and has only thrown 713 passes in college and the pros combined. He will also begin the year without receiver Jordan Addison, who is suspended for the first three weeks. In one-QB leagues, he is no more than an upside backup to be drafted in the double-digit rounds. In two-QB leagues, you can start considering him around Round 5 as a QB2. Because of his youth, McCarthy is more valuable in Dynasty, where he's ranked as a top-20 QB.
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Fantasy News
Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: Won't face Patriots
Rotowire
Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said Thursday that McCarthy will not suit up for Saturday's preseason contest against New England.
McCarthy played one drive during Minnesota's preseason opener against the Texans, completing four of seven passes for 30 yards while rushing once for eight yards, but Sam Howell will get the start versus the Patriots. During the Vikings' exhibition finale versus Tennessee on Friday, Aug. 22, McCarthy could get a chance to handle more reps. Justin Jefferson (hamstring) remains absent from practice but will be re-evaluated next week, while Jordan Addison (suspension) will be eligible to play the remainder of the preseason but will begin the regular season with a three-game suspension.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: Plays one drive Saturday
Rotowire
McCarthy completed four of seven passes for 30 yards and added eight yards on his only carry in Saturday's 20-10 preseason win over the Texans.
Seeing his first NFL game action since undergoing knee surgery in August 2024, McCarthy played just one possession and led the Vikings to a field goal, with his longest completion going for 18 yards to Jordan Addison. Neither Justin Jefferson (hamstring) nor T.J. Hockenson (leg) suited up for Saturday's contest, and whatever chemistry McCarthy develops with Addison will get shelved until Week 4 due to the wideout's looming suspension, but the top priority for the young QB this preseason is just to stay healthy as he heads into his first season as Minnesota's starter.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: Set to play Saturday
Rotowire
McCarthy is slated to start Saturday's preseason opener against the Texans, Steven Louis Goldstein of The Athletic reports.
This will mark McCarthy's first game action since he tore the meniscus in his right knee in his first NFL preseason contest last year. With Sam Darnold no longer in the mix, the 2024 first-rounder is on track to begin the coming campaign as the Vikings' starting QB. As for Saturday, it remains to be seen how many snaps McCarthy will see, but for context, Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com notes that Darnold played the first series of the 2024 preseason opener, 12 snaps in total, before giving way to McCarthy.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: In line to play preseason opener
Rotowire
McCarthy is expected to play in Saturday's preseason game against the Texans, Ben Goessling of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
McCarthy's workload in Minnesota's exhibition opener is to be determined. Beyond that, as coach Kevin O'Connell told Goessling, the Vikings "will more than likely" focus on a joint practice with the Patriots next Wednesday, Aug. 13 and then hold out McCarthy in the ensuing preseason contest with New England on Saturday, Aug. 16. How McCarthy looks after that point will determine whether or not he sees game action in the final preseason contest Friday, Aug. 22 at Tennessee.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: No issues with knee
Rotowire
McCarthy has been participating in spring practices without any issues in his surgically repaired knee, Ben Goessling of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.
Coming back from a meniscus tear suffered last summer, McCarthy resumed on-field work in January, setting him up for a normal offseason. As expected, he had no limitations during OTAs and then passed his physical at the start of June minicamp. With Sam Howell and Brett Rypien being the veteran quarterbacks on Minnesota's roster, McCarthy doesn't appear to have any competition for the Week 1 starting job. He's in a great situation under coach Kevin O'Connell, throwing passes to Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson while playing behind one of the best offensive lines in the league. McCarthy also offers more running ability that Sam Darnold, who threw for a career-high 4,319 yards and 35 TDs in Minnesota during the 2024 regular season.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: Will miss entire rookie season
Rotowire
Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell announced that McCarthy underwent season-ending surgery Wednesday to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee.
The Vikings had some hope that the rookie No. 10 overall pick would only need his meniscus trimmed, an operation that would've allowed him to return in 2024. Instead, surgeons ended up doing a full repair of the meniscus, likely leaving McCarthy with a recovery timeline of 4-to-6 months. With McCarthy's rookie season now completely wiped out, Sam Darnold is set to start Week 1 for the Vikings and potentially hold down the top spot on the depth chart throughout the season. Minnesota could look to upgrade its depth at the position behind Darnold, with journeyman Nick Mullens and second-year quarterback Jaren Hall currently ranking as the Nos. 2 and 3 options, respectively.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: Severity of knee injury TBD
Rotowire
McCarthy (knee) has a tear in his meniscus in his right knee, but the severity of the injury won't be determined until he undergoes surgery, Andrew Krammer of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
McCarthy is set to miss extended time, but an exact timeline "will be something determined during the procedure," according to head coach Kevin O'Connell. If the quarterback is dealing with a small tear, he may be able to address it with a cleanup surgery, but a full repair would mean a longer recovery, Ben Goessling of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. O'Connell also added that the team will ultimately do "what's best for the long-term health of J.J." Sam Darnold appears set to begin the regular season as the Vikings' starting quarterback.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: Expected to undergo knee surgery
Rotowire
McCarthy (knee) is expected to undergo knee surgery to address a meniscus issue after having an MRI on Monday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
McCarthy reported knee soreness over the weekend, and the MRI he underwent Monday revealed an issue serious enough to require surgery. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports that McCarthy will require either a meniscus trim, which would carry a recovery timeline of at least a few weeks, or a repair which could sideline the rookie quarterback multiple months. Even if McCarthy is able to make a rapid return, Sam Darnold now has a clear path to the Week 1 starting gig for Minnesota.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: Nursing knee soreness
Rotowire
McCarthy (knee) is not practicing Monday, and it is unclear if he will travel to Cleveland for joint practices, Dane Mizutani of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.
McCarthy excelled during his preseason debut to the tune of two passing touchdowns and 188 yards through the air. The rookie also completed 11 of 17 passes and finished with a 116.8 passer rating. It is unclear how serious his knee soreness is, but it would not be surprising to see the Vikings exercise caution with the 10th overall pick in this year's draft. If McCarthy ultimately misses more practice time, Sam Darnold would presumably get all of the first-team reps while Nick Mullens and Jaren Hall continue competing for the No. 3 role under center.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: Two TD passes in pro debut
Rotowire
McCarthy was 11-for-17 passing for 188 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in Saturday's preseason win over Las Vegas.
McCarthy threw an interception on a rushed throw under pressure on his first drive in his pro debut, but he settled down thereafter and was sharp with a 116.8 passer rating. Most of his production came in the second half against the second- and third-string defense, but he threw nice deep balls on touchdown passes of 45 and 33 yards. Sam Darnold played just the first series on offense as he remains the favorite to start Week 1. However, McCarthy showed he could be a factor earlier rather than later this season.
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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy: Set for significant action Saturday
Rotowire
Coach Kevin O'Connell said Thursday that McCarthy will get "a significant amount of work" during Saturday's preseason game against the Raiders, but that Sam Darnold will start at quarterback, Ben Goessling of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
McCarthy may or may not get a chance to work with the first-team offense after Darnold on Saturday, but in any case it sounds like the rookie first-round pick will get plenty of opportunities to display his talents. Though McCarthy has ceded the majority of first-team reps to Darnold to start training camp, the expectation is for that split to grow more even as the regular season approaches. Darnold remains the favorite to start Week 1 against the Giants, but a strong preseason showing by McCarthy on Saturday could make that conversation more interesting.
