Despite sitting in last place in the NFC North, the Minnesota Vikings (4-5) are still alive in both the NFC playoff race and the hunt for a division title.
They're just two games behind the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears, who are both 6-3 and tied atop the division, and they play both one more time along with two matchups against the division rival Green Bay Packers as well over the final eight games of the regular season.
The good news for Vikings fans is the team already boasts wins over the Lions and Bears - and both of those victories came when second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy was starting.
McCarthy has been limited to just four of Minnesota's nine games this season due to an ankle injury suffered earlier in the year, and judging from his last two performances (391 combined yards passing, three touchdowns, three interceptions), he's still shaking off some rust.
It's likely a bit premature to say that McCarthy is not only playing for a playoff spot the rest of the season but possibly his job next year considering everything the team has invested in him - Minnesota let Sam Darnold walk after a career year and used the No. 10 overall pick on McCarthy two seasons ago - but one well-known NFL analyst believes McCarthy could be in danger of having of at least having tougher competition in 2026.
ESPN's Bill Barnwell recently reported that he thinks the Vikings will enter next season with a much better No. 2 option behind McCarthy than Carson Wentz - someone to push him and make him earn the starting job.
"I’d still be surprised if the Vikings really knew, even privately, whether McCarthy was going to pan out as their starter of the future … because again, it has been four starts," Barnwell wrote.
"What does seem clear, though, is that the Vikings should be more aggressive in having someone behind McCarthy to both compete with him for the starting job in 2026 and fill in for the 2024 first-round pick in case he battles more injuries. … I’d expect a more reliable veteran to be the No. 2 option in 2026."
If Barnwell’s prediction comes true, then that likely means McCarthy had a rather uninspiring final eight games to close out the year, and the Vikings could be second-guessing whether or not the Michigan alum is, in fact, the QB of the future.
McCarthy hasn’t shown much through the first four games of this season, throwing for 692 yards, five touchdowns, and six interceptions with a passer rating of 65.8.
While not exactly eye-popping numbers, the Vikings have made sure to remind everyone McCarthy is only four starts into his NFL career, and those starts have been sandwiched around two pretty significant injuries.
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