Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy expected to miss Sunday’s game vs. Bengals because of ankle injury

Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy suffered an ankle injury in Sunday’s 22-6 loss to the Falcons and is expected to miss next week’s game against the Bengals, coach Kevin O’Connell announced Monday.

Carson Wentz, signed as the backup on Aug. 24, would start at quarterback instead. Bengals star quarterback Joe Burrow also will miss the game and is expected to be out for at least three months because of a toe injury.

O’Connell said McCarthy’s injury happened on a second-and-20 scramble in the third quarter, when he was taken down by Atlanta’s Kaden Elliss as he went out of bounds near the Vikings sideline.

“He just kind of got rolled up on,” O’Connell said. “In the moment, we didn’t necessarily think it was that significant when we came off after that series. There was somebody in the blue [medical] tent, so he got it evaluated right there, got it taped up and went back in the game. Hearing from our medical staff, it’s one of those things that tends to be much worse today than it probably was in the moment, with adrenaline and everything.“

Elliss was not flagged for a hip drop tackle on the play, but a source with knowledge of the situation said the Vikings plan to send the play to the NFL. The league often disciplines players for hip drop tackles with fines after the fact.

O’Connell said he didn’t think the injury was severe enough for McCarthy to land on injured reserve, which would keep him out for a minimum of four weeks, but he didn’t have a concrete timetable for when the quarterback would return.

O’Connell added that he wanted to see how the injury responds to treatment through the week.

With McCarthy out, the Vikings will turn to Wentz, who started one game each of the past two years for the Rams and Chiefs. He was the runner-up in the NFL MVP voting in 2017, when he led an Eagles team that won Super Bowl LII at U.S. Bank Stadium after Wentz tore a knee ligament. He was out of Philadelphia after the 2020 season, and his last year as a full-time starter was in 2021 for the Colts, when he threw 27 touchdowns against seven interceptions.

Wentz got the majority of the practice snaps last Thursday when McCarthy was gone to be with his fiancée as she delivered the couple’s first child.

“Carson stepped in and did a great job,” O’Connell said. “I know the guys will have a ton of confidence in him, as well as Max [Brosmer] being a snap away.”

McCarthy, who was sacked six times by the Falcons, joins the long list of injured Vikings players coming out of the game. Offensive linemen Ryan Kelly and Justin Skule are in the concussion protocol, and running back Aaron Jones is likely to be out this week because of a hamstring injury, O’Connell said. Left tackle Christian Darrisaw has not yet returned to game action after having knee surgery last October.

The Vikings defense came into Sunday’s game with its own injury issues. Linebackers Blake Cashman (hamstring) and Andrew Van Ginkel (concussion), cornerback Jeff Okudah (concussion) and safety Harrison Smith (illness) were out.

“We’re definitely dealing with some adversity right now for sure,” O’Connell said. “Both through our performance, but also, the injury side of things. It’s never, ever going to be an excuse.”

Many hands contributed to the Falcons sacking McCarthy six times.

Five different Vikings blockers — guards Donovan Jackson and Will Fries, tackles Skule and Brian O’Neill, and running back Jordan Mason — surrendered a sack, according to Pro Football Focus. McCarthy appeared to be the culprit on another when he fled a clean pocket on third down. O’Neill’s gaffe was critical, leading to an unblocked rusher and strip sack in the fourth quarter.

The Falcons defense generated pressure on 53.3% of dropbacks, according to NFL Next Gen Stats, the franchise’s highest rate since 2018.

Second-year outside linebacker Dallas Turner played a career-high 60 snaps (91%) during his first NFL start against the Falcons. Turner replaced the injured Van Ginkel, who suffered a concussion in the Sept. 8 win in Chicago.

But he did get his first sack of the season when defensive tackle Javon Hargrave forced Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. to flee from the pocket.

“I was just the cleanup guy,” Turner said. “Grave [Hargrave] got there for the pressure and I just made the play.”

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