Each Minnesota Vikings fan, participant, and coach’s worst concern performed out on Wednesday, because the franchise introduced that rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy will miss all the 2024 season with a torn meniscus.
The Thoughts-Boggling Factoid about J.J. McCarthy’s Scenario
The 21-year-old had surgical procedure on the damage he suffered final weekend in a preseason win, and his once-promising rookie marketing campaign was over earlier than it actually started.
And based on CBS Sports activities’ Doug Clawson, the scenario is fully unprecedented. On Wednesday, after the McCarthy injured reserve designation, Clawson tweeted, “J.J. McCarthy is the primary quarterback drafted within the first spherical within the frequent draft period (since 1967) to overlook his whole rookie season because of damage.”
To which Vikings followers, a bunch wildly acquainted with sports-themed ache and struggling, universally declared, “Sounds about proper.”
Minnesota made the mistaken type of historical past by way of the Clawson tweet, the primary franchise within the Tremendous Bowl period to be rocked by a season-ending damage to its 1st-Spherical quarterback. You completely can not make it up.
In McCarthy’s stead — and with severely diminished enthusiasm — Sam Darnold will absolutely assume QB1 duties in 3.5 weeks, assuming he doesn’t get injured, too, within the subsequent 25 days. Darnold has not discovered stardom within the final six seasons after becoming a member of the NFL because the third general decide in 2018. Earlier than the McCarthy damage, some Vikings trustworthy insisted that the 27-year-old might produce a “Baker Mayfield season” in Minnesota, which is now the good hope for 2024 Vikings operations.
After Darnold on the depth chart, Nick Mullens can be the following man up, with second-year signal-caller Jaren Corridor on deck if no extra signings or trades happen.
McCarthy posted encouragement on Instagram on Wednesday, “A blazing fireplace makes flame and brightness out of all the things that’s thrown into it,” a quote from Marcus Aurelius.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell additionally addressed McCarthy’s damage. “He’s confirmed all the things that I hoped to see early in coaching camp via his efficiency final Saturday, however our fan base and everybody ought to simply be enthusiastic about the truth that we’ve bought our younger franchise quarterback, I consider, within the constructing,” he stated. “And now it’s in regards to the distinctive side of continuous a really essential improvement course of for him, the place perhaps the bodily reps aren’t going to be there within the quick time period, however that is going to be a small bump within the highway.”
The Vikings hit the highway for a recreation on the New York Giants in Week 1 and are one-point underdogs.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the College of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his every day YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The present options company, evaluation, and opinion on all issues associated to the purple staff, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates again to 1996. Listed responsible pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doorways (the band). He follows the NBA as intently because the NFL.
All statistics supplied by Professional Soccer Reference / Stathead; all contractual data supplied by OverTheCap.com.