Its pretty simple and straight forward IMO....
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And this is probably stating the obvious, but.....if Minnesota does not get another 'substantial' QB into Minnesota this offseason, and trust me, there'll be a few decent vets available via trade or even a guy like Malik Willis, the staff has seen enough of JJM to feel strongly about his ability to improve in 2026 and beyond. They've seen the warts, the inconsistency, etc. and even more internally to know better than fans do. KOC has been through the ringer this season with QB injuries and injuries overall and I can't see him NOT doing something if felt seriously concerned. No way the passing offense will look like it looked this season next year, whether thats with JJM starting or another QB.
Fans can agree or not, get upset about doing nothing but pushing forward with JJM, but the actions will speak for what the org. believes in. If they want to go into another direction OR have a REAL QB competition in '26, they'll be able to do it. If they don't, its a massive statement in their belief of McCarthy. Pretty simple. This is basically the careers in Minnesota of both KOC and KAM hanging in the balance....so the action or inaction will be quite loud. Everyone knows my opinion and how I feel about McCarthy, so I won't belabor it other than to say I expect JJM to look much better next season. JMO. But if they make a loud action contrary to continuing unencumbered with him, then we'll have our answer as fans.
Happy New Year, everyone! One of these days......
Fans can agree or not, get upset about doing nothing but pushing forward with JJM, but the actions will speak for what the org. believes in. If they want to go into another direction OR have a REAL QB competition in '26, they'll be able to do it. If they don't, its a massive statement in their belief of McCarthy. Pretty simple. This is basically the careers in Minnesota of both KOC and KAM hanging in the balance....so the action or inaction will be quite loud. Everyone knows my opinion and how I feel about McCarthy, so I won't belabor it other than to say I expect JJM to look much better next season. JMO. But if they make a loud action contrary to continuing unencumbered with him, then we'll have our answer as fans.
Happy New Year, everyone! One of these days......
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Dec 31, 4:30 AM
Dec 31, 2025 4:30 AM
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IceRatz16 wrote:
Agreed. I would bring in Malik Willis for competition and may the best man win. I'm a huge McCarthy fan and believe he is the future and Willis would be a good backup at the very least. I'm not as concerned about injuries as many Vikings fans are/have been with McCarthy, as I truly believe they have been freak situations and not the norm for him going forward. He is tough and will play through pain and will continue to improve. This offseason will be huge for him and Jefferson and the future of this organization. I am not an eternal optimist, more of a realist, but I'm seeing things a little more rosy than most in this area.
And what JJM has going for him is something MB hit on, he's dynamic. Not every QB has that in him. So he's still a very interesting piece of clay for KOC. But he's got to improve, just like any other young QB....it seems he's trending in that way. Should be an interesting time from January to August in Vikingland.
[hr]
MAD GAINZ wrote:
Daniels did as a rookie. He was hurt more than "Glass JJ McCarthy" this season. Even when Daniels was healthy, he didn't look as dynamic as his rookie year.
Williams took a ton of sacks and played pretty inconsistent his rookie year. He's still taking bad sacks, but he's gotten better as a passer as the season has went on. Still reminds me of Kyler Murray, we'll see if he has lasting power.
Nix started terribly his rookie year and then played very well in the second half of his rookie year. His stats get padded by a ton of short passes and he has an inconsistent deep ball yet. Denver's defense is the main reason they have been a playoff team the past two years, helps Nix out too.
Maye and Penix were both up and down their rookie years. Maye is playing some great football against an easy schedule. I think Maye has looked the cleanest this year of the 2024 QB class.
We saw a couple great games from JJ McCarthy, a couple bad games, and a few average-ish ones where he showed some clutch factor (both Chicago games). Jury is still out... but other than the injuries, we saw a great ceiling and enough clutch throws to feel like JJ McCarthy could be next year's version of Drake Maye. Just needs more reps and to stay on the field.
Well said. Some perspective.
edited Jan 1, 2026 4:43 AM
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RS_Express wrote:
JJM is still younger than Nix and Daniels were when they were drafted. I think he should still be Plan A for 2026. But they need a much better plan B. And a new OL coach. And a possibly a hypnotist to get the receivers to remember how to catch.
"Noted just to highlight how young JJ still is even though he last played college football 2 years ago.
JJM was born 1/20/2003. The four of eight QBs in the current college playoffs who are older are:
Carson Beck (Miami) 11/19/2002
Behren Morton (Texas Tech) 1/17/2002
Ty Simpson (Alabama) 12/21/2002
Trinidad Chambliss (Ole Miss) 8/24/2002"
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...another thing to keep in mind: I believe I read the Vikings had 18 different configurations of offensive linemen playing so far this year? The "Maul of America" started what, 1 game together? Did they even finish that game? Grossness.
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MAD GAINZ wrote:
Really? He's the only QB in NFL history to have three games with multi-TD passes and a rushing TD in his first 8 starts.
I can dredge up my post showing how Caleb, Maye, Nix, and Penix did in their first 8 starts. JJ McCarthy had more total TDs than all of them in his first 8 starts.
Problem is most people are comparing his stats this year to his fellow QB class in their second season. Does JJ need to stay healthy and start playing more consistent? Yes. Has he been awful? No.
lol, you won't be changing some hearts or minds on this. Hell, there's still a small number that want to see more Brosmer. :rolleyes:
Fans are going to fan....but all opinions welcome.
edited Jan 3, 2026 4:50 AM
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MaroonBells wrote:
These "multi-criteria" statements are a little misleading. But I definitely agree that it's unfair to compare McCarthy to QBs with FOUR times as many starts under their belts, (McCarthy 8, Nix and Williams 33), and that if you look at just their first 8 starts, McCarthy compares favorably...especially when you consider his 8 starts were broken up by injury and not contiguous.
...yet we have believers in the almighty gospel, PFF grades. lol. Pick your narrative I guess.
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