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The perception exists that free-agency signing Kyler Murray is the overwhelming favorite to emerge as the Minnesota Vikings’ starting quarterback over 2024 first-round draft pick J.J. McCarthy later this summer.
That said, one May report revealed that the Vikings’ “hope is bringing in Murray sends some sort of shock to McCarthy’s system and gets him refocused on whatever they think he got away from last year.” For a mailbag published on Friday, Vikings reporter Alec Lewis of The Athletic was asked to share the aspects of McCarthy’s game the signal-caller needs to improve between now and the end of August.
Why there’s some hope J.J. McCarthy may have fixed his footwork
“McCarthy’s accuracy, his touch and his consistency. Each warrants elaboration,” Lewis wrote. “The young quarterback’s ball placement wavered throughout the 2025 season, and coach Kevin O’Connell often attributed the inaccuracies to McCarthy’s footwork. McCarthy spent weeks with private throwing coach John Beck to smooth over some of these issues. The lack of touch coincides with McCarthy’s lack of precision as a passer in 2025. He uncorked passes on a line. When the Vikings drafted McCarthy, they knew this area of his game needed work.”
McCarthy spent his entire rookie campaign recovering from a full meniscus repair. According to Pro Football Reference, he then ended the 2025 regular season ranked 30th in the league among qualified players with a 35.6 adjusted QBR, last with a 72.6 passer rating and last with a 57.6 percent completion percentage.
Needless to say, O’Connell and Co. determined such production wasn’t good enough before they added Murray to the Vikings’ quarterback room earlier this offseason.
J.J. McCarthy didn’t meet the Vikings’ standards in this way
A previous report suggested that McCarthy had trouble understanding “the more elemental aspects of being the face of a franchise” last season. Lewis hinted that McCarthy’s work behind the scenes throughout 2025 left much to be desired.
“Then there’s the consistency piece,” Lewis continued. “How McCarthy shows up to work every day and how his habits progress in his third season. The Vikings have a high standard at the position. They want the starting quarterback to lift the tide for the entire team in 2026. This requires a level of discipline, which was up and down last season for McCarthy.”
The good news for McCarthy is that the Vikings allegedly won’t give up on him before he receives an opportunity to truly compete with Murray through at least a portion of training camp. However, questions about McCarthy’s future in Minnesota will grow only louder if he ends the preseason as the club’s QB2.
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