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News | Minnesota Vikings – vikings.com

J.J. McCarthy: Returning to Game Action with Vikings Teammates 'Truly Awesome'

QB J.J. McCarthy
QB J.J. McCarthy

MINNEAPOLIS — Good things are worth the wait.

Three-hundred-and-sixty-four days after J.J. McCarthy debuted in an exhibition against Las Vegas, No. 9 returned for his second sniff of the preseason. The quarterback took a knee to pray at the 9-yard line shortly before the National Anthem bellowed at U.S. Bank Stadium. Then he led a 13-play scoring drive.

The feeling was "unbelievable," McCarthy said afterwards.

"Had a little tear drop. Not going to lie, you know, being out there right before the National Anthem," McCarthy shared, adding he started feeling emotional Friday night. "This game is the best game in the world and to be out there with this kind of group and this coaching staff, it was absolutely terrific.

"The journey that any injured player goes on to be back out there, doing the thing that they love. It was really special, for sure," McCarthy added, noting his feelings caught him a little by surprise. "You're in the moment day-to-day for so long, especially during the rehab process, and finally get to the point where it's like, 'Wow, this is my second game,' and I felt like I played the whole season.

"It was something that did catch me off guard," he continued with earnestness. "But it just shows how much I care for this game, and just being out there with my teammates again was truly awesome."

McCarthy's first live test back from a meniscus injury that robbed him of his rookie year was brief but positive. He finished 4-of-7 passing for 30 yards Saturday in Minnesota's 20-10 win over the Houston Texans and also rushed one time for a gain of 8. Head Coach Kevin O'Connell enjoyed his effort.

"I think there's just a level of composure and poise to how he ran the show that was exactly what I was looking for," O'Connell commented, extending praise to McCarthy's execution. "It's obviously a checkpoint for our whole team, but clearly for J.J. as we got a chance to kind of have our first chance since last year, headset communication in real time, play clock, all of us coaches on the sideline.

"I thought he did a really, really nice job of [running the show]. I would have loved to play him all day long but wanted to have him in there with some of the guys he's going to be in there with and did not want to play that full group very long with such significant work coming up [in joint practices with New England on Wednesday and Thursday]."

In 6:03 of possession, McCarthy managed adversity and displayed great instincts.

Protected by an offensive line of Justin Skule, Donovan Jackson, Ryan Kelly, Will Fries and Brian O'Neill, the Vikings marched 58 yards from their 12 to Houston's 30 before sending out kicker Will Reichard.

Kelly, the 32-year-old, four-time Pro Bowl center lauded McCarthy's cool, calm, collectedness.

"He was just the same guy he was in practice," Kelly offered. "I mean, that's always kind of the thing. Even being in Year 10, you still have to bring yourself down a little bit when it's game day. It's the same thing. It's the practice field just in the game, right? I think the way he handled the huddle, handled all of our kills was incredible. I think he did a great job. Couldn't be more proud of him. And he's the first guy to congratulate us on not having any pressures, which was great, too. He just continues to amaze me."

Minnesota was penalized for a hold on the opening kickoff and was pinned inside its 20, but McCarthy didn't sweat the setback. He handed off to Jordan Mason once before completing his first attempt to Jordan Addison for a gain of 5 yards on a bootleg to his left. On his first "weighty" down of the day, the 22-year-old connected with Addison, again, for a pickup of 10 to his left side to convert a third-and-4.

Mason was featured frequently, carrying four times for 20 yards to soften the defense for McCarthy, who said he has "all the confidence in the world" in the bruising back whom Minnesota traded for in March.

The 2024 first-round pick's two sharpest moments demonstrated his awareness, arm strength and ball placement. On a second-and-5 at Minnesota's 33, and under duress, McCarthy spun a ball far across the field to Addison for an 18-yard chunk. It was low and outside, where only Addison was able to retrieve it.

View game action photos from the Vikings vs. Texans 2025 preseason opener at U.S. Bank Stadium.

McCarthy called it the type of growing rep that "injects confidence in my being, going to the next one."

Four snaps later, facing a fourth-and-four, McCarthy used his athleticism. He escaped a blitz by linebacker Jake Hansen, scrambled around the right corner and cruised casually out of bounds past the line to gain.

"Those fourth downs, you've got to get it no matter how you do it – but you've got to get it," McCarthy quipped. "And just being able to feel that [pass] rush right away and get out right away – that was something that, instinctively I was second-guessing myself going out there and [facing a live defense] but it was great to just feel that reaction and move forward with it."

O'Connell was a fan of McCarthy "stealing" a first down with his legs. The coach drew attention to one play, a pass too high over the middle intended for Lucky Jackson, he believed McCarthy was "sped up on" but otherwise commended his quarterback's decision-making in a setting without much game-planning.

"I didn't really feel like he put the ball at harm's risk very much in that sequence of plays," O'Connell said, explaining his mentality to keep McCarthy out there for a fourth down fairly close to midfield wasn't attributed to the lower-level stakes of an exhibition. "With the way I believe our defense is going to play and the way I believe our kicking game is going to play, anytime we can put together a drive like that and get points, we always want to try to get seven. We're going to be aggressive. It wasn't just a 'preseason go for it.' I wanted to see our group get that first down and be aggressive from that standpoint."

On an ensuing third down, McCarthy zipped a short pass to Mason over the middle, but the running back couldn't collect it with a defender draped on his shoulders. Although Minnesota's offense stalled and settled for a 48-yard field goal by Reichard, McCarthy performed well, in full command of the unit.

When the Vikings offense trotted onto the field for its second possession, McCarthy stood chatting with a cap on his head instead of a helmet. The youngest projected starting quarterback in the NFL did his job.

"I feel like K.O. just thought of this as checking another box," McCarthy replied to a question regarding his readiness for the regular season. "He really wanted to see the operation and the fundamentals and doing the simple things at a high level. And I feel like we did that today. Obviously there's a couple things here or there we've got to clean up, but it felt like we left today in a great spot."

In the second half, still sporting thick streaks of eye black on his cheeks, McCarthy flipped his hat backwards and soaked in the play of his teammates – and the gratitude coursing through his body.

View pregame photos as the Vikings get set for the preseason opener against the Texans at US Bank Stadium.

"I was just so happy for my guys," McCarthy said. "Everyone's fighting to earn a job, you know, we've got a 90-man roster, and there's so many great guys that should be on this team, so I was just so thrilled to see, Sam [Howell], Ryp' (Brett Rypien), Max [Brosmer] do their thing out there, and the rest of the crew."

It's important to note McCarthy was flanked Saturday by 80 percent of the starting five up front (left tackle Christian Darrisaw rested as part of his reacclimation from a torn ACL last season, in favor of Skule) and operated efficiently without the star presence of playmakers Justin Jefferson and Aaron Jones, Sr.

Those good things are worth the wait, as well.

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