McCarthy to get his shot in New York

It’s an interesting situation for us Vikings fans.  A lot of us are rooting for him to do well, but if he does well it doesn’t look great for our coaching staff and front office, which is currently doing most things outside of offense at a very high level. 

I think he looked really good yesterday … against a prevent defense … in a small sample size.  He looked fast, decisive, accurate.  I think there’s a good chance he looks good with a coach that has an offense more tailored for a younger QB, which I think since they were working with Dart and Winston seems more likely.  Make the reads simpler and let him play fast.  I’m really curious to see what we do with our offense after this season, given how much they’ve had to change things to make it work with Kyler.

Here's his chunk of play against the Saints for those that didn't see it. Have to go to Youtube.

Too early to say, can't root against JJM though.

Searing bright lights in NY.

GL to him

I'll always root for McCarthy, he's a good kid with some of the right stuff. And if he somehow shoves it up Minnesota's ass, then he does because he'll have earned it. They gave up on him. But let's be clear: he's starting because NY's starter (Dart) is out for the year and the Jameis Winston Experience always has a shelf life. But he's got a shot regardless, now its up to him. He's been nothing but positive throughout this whole experience. I'll be watching! 👀😤Not surprisingly, he's already won over his new teammates.

Wouldn't expect an immediate decision. Plenty to weigh over the next few days. https://t.co/gQ7mdhxJGu

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 19, 2026

Good for JJ. I think he earned it by how much he sparked that team yesterday. He's likely still going to have those WTF moments, but there's also a good chance he starts to reduce those moments as he gets more experience. I kinda expect a Nick Mullens type year from him. I did not want him QB1 for us, but man, I'm not exactly sure why we didn't want him as QB2.

A fresh start for J.J. McCarthy! 👀⁣
⁣@athielen19 reacts to his former Vikings teammate's impressive fourth quarter with the New York Giants and explains why he's rooting for McCarthy to get another opportunity.⁣
⁣#Vikings #NFL pic.twitter.com/AqSfrI1i13

— KFAN1003 (@KFAN1003) October 19, 2026

Players come and go. Some you wanted to stay longer but fans don't make these decisions nor do we get the full story from the front office and coaches. I was pulling for McCarthy when he was a Viking and wish him well with his new team. Change in scenery may be exactly what he needed. Fresh start, new coaches, new philosophy, new playbook, new teammates, etc may very well explain future success.

I hope he is resurgent as hell, and even gives the Giants a big problem with Dart's return next season.

I've seen the "garbage time" and "prevent defense" brush-offs assigned to his performance, but he also got near to Kyler's best Vikings single-game pass yardage in 11 minutes of game time...and scampered for a chunk more.

KOC and Teasley f**ked the kid, totally raw-dogged him, this offseason, and I hope it haunts them. Frankly, I really hope he pulls a "Fran" and comes back for the peak of his career.

Zanary wrote:

I hope he is resurgent as hell, and even gives the Giants a big problem with Dart's return next season.

I've seen the "garbage time" and "prevent defense" brush-offs assigned to his performance, but he also got near to Kyler's best Vikings single-game pass yardage in 11 minutes of game time...and scampered for a chunk more.

KOC and Teasley f**ked the kid, totally raw-dogged him, this offseason, and I hope it haunts them. Frankly, I really hope he pulls a "Fran" and comes back for the peak of his career.

My personal belief is that KOC and McCown just weren't equipped to train him, but I'd be curious to know how much of the trade was the Vikings wanting out and how much was JJM making it hard to hold onto him, because I kind of get emo vibes from him and he certainly was in a deep funk at end of the preseason, and if working with him every day was just emotionally draining in the room, I can see how they'd want to freshen the air for both sides.

medaille wrote:

My personal belief is that KOC and McCown just weren't equipped to train him, but I'd be curious to know how much of the trade was the Vikings wanting out and how much was JJM making it hard to hold onto him, because I kind of get emo vibes from him and he certainly was in a deep funk at end of the preseason, and if working with him every day was just emotionally draining in the room, I can see how they'd want to freshen the air for both sides.

I think the bulls**t competition would've brought out the glum-Gus in anyone, really. I just find it curious that our highly-rated culture and 'QB whisperer' coach always seems to gravitate back towards veterans while the young'uns keep washing out...

...and, honestly, I haven't really seen much QB play in our 5 wins that was above the level he was playing at late last season. Wentz delivered, K1 now has a replay-worthy TD pass...but, neither really raised the bar.

Zanary wrote:

I think the bulls**t competition would've brought out the glum-Gus in anyone, really. I just find it curious that our highly-rated culture and 'QB whisperer' coach always seems to gravitate back towards veterans while the young'uns keep washing out...

...and, honestly, I haven't really seen much QB play in our 5 wins that was above the level he was playing at late last season?

I don't think we beat Nawlins without Kyler TBH.

I don’t think JJ ever had a fair shot here. If he did, he’d have probably been the starter this season if I go off of what I’ve seen of Kyler. I can’t imagine it was easy for JJ when they clearly favored a guy he was performing better than. I go back to the preseason when the irrational narratives were spinning about his performance and coach said nothing. If I had been in his position, I’d have preferred out at that point.

He got a whopping 10 starts. It’s basically unheard of to have a coach and personnel guy give so little towards developing a player. Nearly every single great QB, to include Hall of Famers, need 30+ game starts before starting to really “get it”. This Viking leadership group was not willing to do that. That means this is not a team equipped to draft and develop a franchise QB. Whatever. I think very little of Teasley so far. I think the ownership group screwed the porch yet again by hiring him over Reed Burckhardt (I am super biased but really mean it). KOC knows coaching, but he’s no QB guru and appears to do a poor job with player development. Every guy he has success with was developed by someone else.

I hope KOC didn’t burn that bridge with JJ. We very well may need to go after him next offseason.

The kid wasn’t perfect, but he played better than expected considering his limited experience. He didn’t face a “prevent” defense (which no one has truly run for decades), he faced a defense knowing he as passing every down and a defensive line knowing they could go all out. Could Kyler have handled it in the same manner? In my opinion based on what we’ve seen, absolutely not.

Havoc wrote:

I don’t think JJ ever had a fair shot here. If he did, he’d have probably been the starter this season if I go off of what I’ve seen of Kyler. I can’t imagine it was easy for JJ when they clearly favored a guy he was performing better than. I go back to the preseason when the irrational narratives were spinning about his performance and coach said nothing. If I had been in his position, I’d have preferred out at that point.
He got a whopping 10 starts. It’s basically unheard of to have a coach and personnel guy give so little towards developing a player. Nearly every single great QB, to include Hall of Famers, need 30+ game starts before starting to really “get it”. This Viking leadership group was not willing to do that. That means this is not a team equipped to draft and develop a franchise QB. Whatever. I think very little of Teasley so far. I think the ownership group screwed the porch yet again by hiring him over Reed Burckhardt (I am super biased but really mean it). KOC knows coaching, but he’s no QB guru and appears to do a poor job with player development. Every guy he has success with was developed by someone else.
I hope KOC didn’t burn that bridge with JJ. We very well may need to go after him next offseason.
The kid wasn’t perfect, but he played better than expected considering his limited experience. He didn’t face a “prevent” defense (which no one has truly run for decades), he faced a defense knowing he as passing every down and a defensive line knowing they could go all out. Could Kyler have handled it in the same manner? In my opinion based on what we’ve seen, absolutely not.

Teams don't go after players that they gave up on. JJM is absolutely done here in MN. I am more interested in talking about Kyler, because he is relevant for us. I love JJM, most will tell you, and I wish him well. No real reason to compare the situations moving forward. That idea is dead. For good or for the bad.

Yhe favorite QB in Minnesota is the backup. Too bad he is the backup in NY.

He made a few nice throws against a prevent D, got some good YAC and suddenly he is an all pro.

greediron wrote:

Yhe favorite QB in Minnesota is the backup. Too bad he is the backup in NY.
He made a few nice throws against a prevent D, got some good YAC and suddenly he is an all pro.

I agree. He always had that talent. It was against a defense that was trying not to lose. His raw talent just came out. That won't always win you games from the start. He had his chance and he didn't beat Kyler out.

greediron wrote:

Yhe favorite QB in Minnesota is the backup. Too bad he is the backup in NY.
He made a few nice throws against a prevent D, got some good YAC and suddenly he is an all pro.

Agrred.

Giants @ Texans is a next Sunday. Texans at home and they're desperate. That'll be a fair game to see how much JJ has improved.