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The pressure was on J.J. McCarthy to deliver for the Minnesota Vikings amid questions regarding whether the Michigan product is their franchise quarterback for the foreseeable future. McCarthy completed 14 of 25 passes for 143 yards, threw two touchdowns, and had one interception, while also adding a rushing touchdown in the 27-24 victory over the Detroit Lions. Despite his performance, one sports media host still isn’t entirely sold on the Vikings’ second-year quarterback. On the November 3 edition of “The Herd,” host Colin Cowherd used a rather specific description of how he sees the Minnesota quarterback. “He’s like the UPS driver,” Cowherd said about McCarthy. “I don’t know who he is, but they always deliver on time. The package has never screwed up. I love the delivery system. I don’t know if the UPS driver is any good. Seems like a nice guy. So it just felt a lot like the Michigan J.J. McCarthy, which is I love the coach at Michigan and the tight end and the defense. And that’s what I felt yesterday. It was fine. He was good on script, but it’s not a script league.” Do the Vikings Want J.J. McCarthy to Manage the Game? While McCarthy is in his second year in the NFL, he’s technically a rookie, considering he didn’t play at all his first season in the league due to injury. Furthermore, an injury has also impacted his sophomore season as he’s only played three NFL games. As a result, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell might be easing him to build up his confidence, which is why Cowherd believes that McCarthy is currently in a game-managing role like he was at the University of Michigan. “My take on J.J. McCarthy: He was good on script,” Cowherd added. “First quarter, 141 passer rating. Rest of the game, his passer rating was 38. I’m buying the coach, Kevin O’Connell. I’m buying Justin Jefferson. I buy the left tackle, Christian Darrisaw. But J.J. McCarthy, I felt like I was watching Michigan J.J. McCarthy. Don’t screw it up and make one big throw.” Vikings’ J.J. McCarthy Gets Positive Words Although Cowherd might not be sold on McCarthy right now, CBS Sports NFL analyst Danny Kanell believes that the Vikings signal-caller is heading in the right direction. “I thought he was really impressive, going on the road against one of the better defenses and one of the better teams in the entire National Football League,” Kanell said on “CBS Sports HQ.” “I thought he played with a ton of confidence. The throw he made to Justin Jefferson was a great ball. “Now, you’re throwing Justin on the outside. He made a great catch there, but he’s throwing the ball with a ton of confidence. He is not afraid to take many of those chances because he does have some really good weapons out there. He knows what he can do mobility-wise because he can escape and run. And it was his first time back in the lineup for a while.” McCarthy is showing flashes of his potential, but it will be up to the player to display it across all four quarters. Nonetheless, that will take time as the young quarterback navigates being a starter in the NFL. It will be interesting to see if by the end of the season, he finds that consistency, but for now, he has Minnesota in the middle of the NFC playoff picture.
