As the Vikings prepare for an important game against the Chicago Bears coming up on Sunday at U.S. Bank Stadium, quarterback J.J. McCarthy is dealing with a right-hand injury that has resulted in him being listed as a limited participant in practice
He wore a bandage that covered part of his right hand on Wednesday afternoon at TCO Performance Center, then stood with both hands in the pouch of his hoodie as he talked to reporters after practice.
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“It feels really good,” McCarthy said. “I’ve been getting a lot of treatment in and will continue to do so.”
The fact that McCarthy was listed as a limited participant is not insignificant.
Though he made it clear that he doesn’t expect it to impact his preparation, McCarthy missing reps in practice is notable, especially considering how much head coach Kevin O’Connell has emphasized the importance of time on task.
Not that O’Connell seemed too concerned about McCarthy’s status.
“If this practice was in another 24 hours, it probably wouldn’t have even been something we mentioned,” O’Connell said. “It’s just to make sure the swelling got out there from kind of a bruise that we don’t want to fester.”
As he reflected on the sequence from last weekend that led to the right-hand injury, McCarthy confirmed that it occurred with the Vikings trying to mount a comeback in what ended up being a 27-19 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
There was a play late in the third quarter during which McCarthy ripped a pass to Justin Jefferson near the goal line that probably should have been caught. As he continued with his follow-through, McCarthy slammed his right hand into the helmet of left guard Donovan Jackson.
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That seemed to affect McCarthy — at least anecdotally — as he completed 8 of 18 pass attempts from that point forward. Asked if it had any impact on his performance as a whole, McCarthy admitted he had to play through some pain.
“If you get your hand slammed in a car door, it’s going to feel different for everything you do with that hand,” McCarthy said. “There are no excuses whatsoever. We’re warriors. We have to push through.”
It’s worth noting that McCarthy has struggled with his accuracy, only completing 53.7% of his pass attempts. The root cause can be partially traced to McCarthy’s fundamentals waning over the course of a game.
It’s unclear if McCarthy’s right-hand injury will play a role in those issues this weekend. As he prepared for the game between the Vikings and the Bears, he acknowledged that he had learned a lot since the first meeting in September.
“The biggest thing that comes to mind is consistency,” McCarthy said. “That’s the name of the game in this league.”
After being placed on injured reserve last month, veteran quarterback Carson Wentz had successful surgery on his left shoulder in Los Angeles. He’s expected to rehab at TCO Performance Center when he returns to the Twin Cities.
Meanwhile, veteran center Ryan Kelly had his practice window opened up, meaning he has 21 days to be activated from injured reserve. He hasn’t played since suffering a pair of concussions earlier this season.
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