The first day of Vikings joint practices with the Patriots on Wednesday was up-and-down for Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy in what was his first extended action against a different first-team defense.
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell at training camp on July 30, 2025. (Anthony Souffle/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
“As I told our whole team, it is still practice, but at the same time, we’re playing against an opponent, and we want to see the ability to handle it all,” O’Connell said. “They make a play, can we move on to the next down and just get back to doing the simple things really consistently, doing your job that you can control every single snap?”
Practice started on an awkward foot in 1-on-1s with a string of incompletions that were also flagged, but McCarthy followed that period with a stronger 7-on-7 showing that started with six straight completions until a contested ball targeting Jordan Addison went incomplete and McCarthy was picked off on a high throw targeting Jalen Nailor the next snap.
Full 11-on-11 periods went better, though McCarthy still held on to the ball too long at times, allowing pressure to reach him.
One of McCarthy’s stronger periods of the day was the two-minute drill. O’Connell and others have praised McCarthy for his composure and leadership throughout camp.
McCarthy started by finding tight end T.J. Hockenson on a 9-yard pass in the middle of the field. Aaron Jones quickly converted with a 6-yard pickup off a short pass from McCarthy the next snap.
The Vikings were flagged for a false start, and then a pair of incomplete passes, the first targeting Lucky Jackson and the second going incomplete because of pressure, brought up third-and-15.