We know, at least in general terms now, how much rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy will play in his Vikings (preseason) debut on Saturday.
How’s J.J. lookin’? Vikings fans are about to find out Saturday.
A highly touted rookie quarterback adds an element of intrigue to the preseason, as the Vikings are going to find out for the first time in a decade when J.J. McCarthy takes the field Saturday.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
August 9, 2024 at 4:26PM
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell, true to his word, told reporters on Thursday the plan for all the quarterbacks, which includes a start for Sam Darnold and “significant” action for McCarthy as well as the likely end-of-game duty for second-year QB Jaren Hall.
McCarthy figures to get a bunch of work in the middle of the game, though the exact amount will be determined by game flow and other factors. For however long he is in, all eyes will be on the No. 10 overall pick in a way that a Vikings player hasn’t been scrutinized in the preseason in almost exactly a decade — something I talked about on Friday’s Daily Delivery podcast.
On Aug. 8, 2014, rookie QB Teddy Bridgewater was in a very similar position to McCarthy: a first-round pick expected to start the season as a backup behind a veteran (Matt Cassel in his case) and getting ready for his preseason debut (coincidentally, also against the Raiders, albeit in the Vikings’ temporary two-year home of what was then TCF Bank Stadium, now Huntington Bank).
Vikings writers (and in turn first-year coach Mike Zimmer) were constantly hearing this question from fans: How’s Teddy lookin’?
Cassel started the game and led the Vikings on a quick touchdown drive. Bridgewater took over from there, directing five drives (one was essentially a run-out-the-clock at the end of the first half) that resulted in a made field goal, a missed field goal and not much else. He finished 6 of 13 for 49 yards.
In a full circle moment, Christian Ponder — who had been in Bridgewater’s spot just three years prior — came in for the rest of the game. The Vikings won 10-6 in what is now an utterly forgettable game but felt like it meant the world 10 years ago.
Cassel began the year as the starting QB, but Bridgewater soon took over. What the transition looks like for the Vikings is still unknown, but it is fully expected that at some point Darnold will give way to McCarthy.
What happens in this first preseason game Saturday won’t define that timeline or McCarthy’s ultimate career arc. But it feels vitally important now, as we try to unpack just how J.J. is lookin’.
Here are four more things to know today:
- Bobby Nightengale joined me on Friday’s podcast ahead of the Twins’ big series against Cleveland. Minnesota is 3.5 games behind in the AL Central race and will send three young starting pitchers to the mound in the four-game series.
- Also Friday, I remembered former Minnesota-Duluth men’s hockey coach Mike Sertich, who died Thursday at age 77.
- Nikola Jokic must be getting tired of being on the wrong end of epic comebacks. Team USA rallied from 17 points down to defeat Serbia 95-91 on Thursday; a couple months ago, the Wolves rallied from 20 down to end the Nuggets’ season in Game 7 of the conference semifinals. Common denominator for the winning teams: Anthony Edwards.
- A slight programming change from the normal podcast schedule: Andrew Krammer will join me on Monday’s show instead of Patrick Reusse as we break down the Vikings’ preseason opener.
When he was hired after the disastrous 2016 season to reshape the Twins, Derek Falvey brought a reputation for identifying and developing pitching talent. It took a while, but the pipeline we were promised is now materializing.
