MINNEAPOLIS — In two career fourth quarters against Chicago, J.J. McCarthy, the Windy City's native son, has shrugged off six quarters of inconsistencies and sparked a pair of go-ahead touchdown drives.

In those frames, he clipped 12 of 18 throws with 163 yards, three touchdowns passing and one rushing.

But in the other six combined, the 22-year-old Vikings quarterback found his guy on 17 of 34 passes for 130 yards. He tossed three interceptions, too, including a couple to former teammate Nahshon Wright, who spent most of the 2024 slate on Minnesota's practice squad and had a pick six off McCarthy in his NFL debut in Week 1 before spoiling his former team's scoring chances with less than a minute to go in the first half of Sunday's 19-17 loss to the Bears, a game the Vikings somehow, someway, almost won.

And if it weren't for a 56-yard kickoff return by Chicago's Devin Duvernay with 50 seconds left, well …

But instead, the Vikings are 4-6 on the season and 1-4 in their usually advantageous home environment.

"That's the game of football, right? I mean, there's been plays where we've won in situations like that, and today's the example of how we were on the shorter end of it," right tackle Brian O'Neill said. "It's football. But what we can't do is allow it to shake us and rattle us and, you know, take us off our track."

It's true, the Vikings weren't up to snuff, offensively, in Week 11 for the vast majority of three quarters. But the conductor of the orchestra came through when Minnesota received possession with 3:14 left.

In a "do-or-die moment," McCarthy kept the Vikings comeback hopes afloat with a completion to Jordan Addison on a fourth-and-four after the 2-minute warning. Then, the young quarterback made four great throws in a row, first to Justin Jefferson for 8 yards, then T.J. Hockenson for 11 and Jalen "Speedy" Nailor for 16. His final one was 15 yards to Addison that tied the game before Will Reichard confirmed the lead.

But Duvernay, an All-Pro returner, zoomed to Minnesota's 40, and Bears kicker Cairo Santos booted the game-winner four plays later. McCarthy, playing in his fifth career game, called it a "gut-wrenching loss."

"There's definitely things that we did well today. But how can we amplify those things, and how can we eliminate the mistakes?" the team captain commented at his postgame press conference. "I take full responsibility for those mistakes, and I gotta make sure that we come out tomorrow ready to get better."

McCarthy chalked up his late-game rhythm as "preparation coming to fruition."

His heroics were assisted by a rushing attack that quietly averaged 5.2 yards per attempt and racked up 115 on the ground; Jordan Mason had 45 on just six carries, one of which went for six, and Aaron Jones, Sr., gained 70 on 16 rushes. Rookie returner Myles Price also factored into the equation, amassing 172 yards on four kickoffs and three punts, including a career-long 43-yard punt return that set up Mason's TD rumble.

The story of the afternoon, however, was McCarthy yo-yoing between poor and elite performance.

"I just kept telling him, 'Feet and eyes, feet and eyes, and the things that we saw throughout the week on the practice field, you know, make it about that,'" Head Coach Kevin O'Connell shared afterwards about McCarthy's mixed-bag performance. "And I thought he did some nice things checking the ball down a couple times. We might have missed some chances … but it's just about the next play in [those moments]. You can't be, obviously, coaching principles. And I know Josh [McCown] is coaching footwork and technique, and I'm trying to call things that I feel will have the best chance to give him rhythm throws. But at the same time, just find different types of throws that I know I've seen him hit.

O'Connell added, "I will say I was really proud of the way he finished that drive."

McCarthy's stepping-up-to-the-plate with the outcome at stake demonstrated his ability to play quarterback like a point guard while keeping internal pressure at bay by focusing on his mental poise.

But it didn't erase the earlier mistakes, like the pass to the end zone that maybe was a smidge late and hung in the air for Wright to intercept. Or the decision McCarthy made on the preceding series, when he failed to account for Bears ball-hawking safety Kevin Byard III on a throw targeting Jefferson that was picked off and helped Chicago extend its lead to 10-3 with about two minutes to play in the first half.

Overall, McCarthy finished with a 50-percent completion rate and 150 yards passing. His rating was 47.7. A mixture of misses on his behalf and uncharacteristic drops by Vikings players afflicted his performance.

Like the leader he is, McCarthy shouldered responsibility for the miscues, however they happened.

"I've never really felt the snowball, just because I'm worried about that next throw and I flush the one that happened previously," McCarthy said. "But at the end of the day, whether it's five in a row, two in a row, one time, like I just can't have it. This league is too hard, and I gotta be able to make those throws."

As for the broader picture, McCarthy maintained his optimism, echoing teammates.

"I don't think it's too hard for me because I'm obsessed with the process. I'm obsessed with growing and getting better, and K.O. is the same way, this entire group is the same way," McCarthy shared confidently.

"This group is so tight knit and so determined to just make sure we get to that point, you know, something we can be proud of every single Sunday when we leave the stadium," he continued. "We're not there yet, especially as an offense, and I take full responsibility to help make sure we get there.

"I think adversity is one of the greatest things for individual growth, collective growth, whatever it is," McCarthy added after dropping to 2-3. "And I think it could really separate teams or bring them tighter together. And I feel like this team is being brought tighter and tighter together every week."

Jefferson admitted "the frustrations are there" but offered his determination to improve and rectify mistakes even if it entails spending additional time with McCarthy to strengthen their on-field chemistry.

"It wasn't the best game for all of us," Jefferson said. "I felt like we should have played better all in all. But at the end of the day, when it all counted and it all mattered, J.J. stepped up. So that's the main key focus of it. Of course, there are things to work through. Of course, there's things to fix on the offensive side of the ball. And we feel that we have to help the defense out a lot more than what we're doing."

The sting burned extra considering the spark that McCarthy discovered in the waning moments.

"You could feel it in the building. You could feel the momentum," O'Connell reflected. "As I told [J.J.] earlier in the game, no matter what this day has been like, I'm going to tell you at the end of this, 'You just moved the ball down the field to help us win this game and I'm proud of you.' And I told him that."

Only the Bears had a prompt rebuttal. Like O'Neill said, that's the game of football.

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