The Vikings knew there would be some ups and downs for J.J. McCarthy this spring in his first full practices since last August's meniscus injury. So even though the 22-year-old quarterback threw a few interceptions and is still finding his stride, the team feels very confident in where he's at after the completion of OTAs and minicamp.
"As was told to me, the Vikings feel like J.J. McCarthy, in day nine of these offseason workouts, was a lot stronger than day one," ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler said on SportsCenter. "Coming off that knee issue, they knew he could start a little slowly. But they like the way he's throwing the ball, they feel very comfortable with where he's at going into training camp. They didn't sign (Aaron) Rodgers and went with McCarthy because they believe in their three-year plan, a young quarterback they like on a rookie-scale (contract). They believe they can win a Super Bowl in the next three years."
These spring practices were all about learning and growth for McCarthy, who received complete medical clearance regarding his knee. This was about taking everything he's learned since the injury and translating it to the field. He wasn't perfect in 7-on-7 action in practices open to the media, but results aren't what matters this time of year. What matters is getting comfortable in the offense, making a wide range of throws, and showing progress. McCarthy did just that. He went through his progressions, checked it down when nothing was open, and let it rip when he felt confident in the look.
"I feel really good about where he's at fundamentally, but it's still that 10,000 reps, that 10,000 hours," head coach Kevin O'Connell said. "We're not that far into that process, and I challenge him every day to embrace it. Can't be too hard on himself, but at the same time, ‘What is your standard to get not where you are right now, but where you want to get to?’ And he's done a good job of attacking that every day."
What these practices provided for McCarthy was a chance to see live 7-on-7 work against some of the Vikings' best defensive players. That allowed him to not only put his classroom learning into action on the field, but to make adjustments outside of structure when a rep didn't go as planned. He also was able to learn from plays that did or didn't go well. One thing both O'Connell and McCarthy mentioned is how he's continuing to grow when it comes to layering the ball with touch to different levels of the field.
"Since we evaluated him and getting him here, arm strength has always been there," O'Connell said. "Accuracy on a lot of the throws that we ask of quarterbacks in this offense have been there. There's been some growth from a standpoint of you can call it throw variation, arm talent. Where maybe there's not a direct path, but I've got to throw it up and over somebody, and I might only have eight to 10 yards of space in the end zone in a low red period to get that done. What I want to compliment him on is he's making the attempts. He's learning what it feels like to attempt those throws so now he can figure out exactly how to apply those reps moving forward to when it's real football and it matters."
The Vikings are now breaking for around six weeks before they gather at TCO Performance Center again to begin training camp in late July. But McCarthy won't be resting much during these next six weeks. He said he plans to throw quite a bit with guys like Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson, even if he has to travel to them to make it happen. The work will continue as Minnesota's QB1 looks to get himself ready to hit the ground running when camp begins.