MINNESOTA
Record: 1-1
Week 2 result: Atlanta 22, Minnesota 6
Quarterback: J.J. McCarthy – 24-for-41 (58.5%), 301 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT, 67.2 rating
Key QB stat: McCarthy's off-target rate was 28.6 percent against the Atlanta Falcons, tied for the second-highest rate among qualified quarterbacks in Week 2.
Quotable: "This is going to be a process for our team," Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell told ESPN after Chicago's loss to Atlanta Sunday. "Our young quarterback is going to make some plays. He's going to make some unbelievable throws.
"And then, other times, he's going to have an attempt and just miss something a little long, and we will go back and try to fix it. Sometimes, the fundamentals are going to be right, the technique is going to be right, but he's learning on the fly right now. The way you overcome that is by the full group's execution level being to a certain standard that we can go try to compete and win with."
Twentyman: This is the life of a young quarterback in the NFL, from the highs of leading your team to a Week 1 come-from-behind win to the criticism that will come with a three-turnover performance in loss at home Week 2.
The reality is a lot like O'Connell talked about above. With young quarterbacks, teams must take the good with the bad. When playing a first-year starting quarterback, everyone else has to elevate their game around them because it's not always going to be perfect. McCarthy must learn to limit the mistakes and manage the game better with a talented roster around him.
O'Connell said Monday that McCarthy is dealing with an ankle injury suffered in the loss to the Falcons and is unlikely to play this week. Veteran Carson Wentz is the backup.
Up next: vs. Cincinnati (2-0), Sun. Sept. 21, 1 p.m.