J.J. McCarthy vs Sam Darnold: Who could be named the Vikings' starting QB in 2024?
The Minnesota Vikings entered the 2024 NFL Draft needing a young quarterback, and they got exactly that when they drafted Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy 10th overall.
The Vikings lost starting quarterback Kirk Cousins in free agency to the Atlanta Falcons, who was their starter for the past six seasons.
The Vikings signed veteran quarterback Sam Darnold in the offseason after losing Cousins. They also have Nick Mullens and Jaren Hall on the roster.
With the team signing Darnold to a one-year, $10 million deal, he has a chance to compete for the starting job with McCarthy.
ESPN's Kevin Seifert shared some insight on how the Vikings could approach their quarterback situation.
Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said the team won't rush McCarthy's development, and that he and head coach Kevin O'Connell will follow an individualized plan that requires McCarthy to hit specific benchmarks before being named the starter.
"We're not going to rush his development. We're just going to do what's best for the Vikings in the short and long term."
Of course, anything can happen from now until the start of the season. Injuries, big leads in progression, regression from veteran quarterbacks, and just about almost any other possibility.
From the sound of it, it seems as if O'Connell and Adofo-Mensah are prepared to head into the season with the veteran Darnold as the starter, with McCarthy getting the chance to eventually earn the spot.
Kevin O'Connell didn't say how long J.J. McCarthy's timetable is for his development
One thing that is important for some quarterbacks' (and other NFL players') progression is allowing them to sometimes sit behind veterans and look for ways to improve their game to make them more NFL-ready.
When asked how long J.J. McCarthy's window would be for his development, O'Connell didn't give a definite answer, instead, he said he's excited about McCarthy joining the team.
"We just added J.J. a couple hours ago. I'm just more excited than anything to get him here, allow him to get around some of his teammates and start building those relationships as well.
"I feel great about where my relationship's at with J.J. because I feel like we've built one up in a pretty short amount of time. But he knows that I'm going to be with him every step of the way."
McCarthy led the Michigan Wolverines to a National Championship this past season while going 15-0 as the starting quarterback. In his career, he only lost one game as a two-year starter for Michigan, as he holds a 27-1 career record.
McCarthy will now get a chance to compete for the starting job with veteran Sam Darnold, who was the third overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.