The Minnesota Vikings are hoping to continue their success from a season ago with a new quarterback at the helm. After Sam Darnold bolted for the Seattle Seahawks in free agency, Seattle will now hand over the reins to second-year quarterback JJ McCarthy, who may as well be a rookie considering he missed the entirety of last year due to injury.
One thing working in McCarthy’s favor this year will be the fact that he has the league’s best wide receiver in Justin Jefferson to throw the ball to.
Recently, McCarthy broke down what he’s seen out of Jefferson so far during training camp.
“It’s a quarterback’s dream to have a receiver like that. We’ve got a great guys in the room too, but Justin’s one of one,” said McCarthy, per SiriusXM NFL Radio on X, formerly Twitter. “…The way he moves is extremely freaky.”
Can the Vikings keep building?
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Last year, not many pundits expected the Minnesota Vikings to be a competitive team in the daunting NFC North division. Minnesota responded by winning 14 games, with an elite defense and a quarterback in Darnold who performed well above his low expectations.
Unfortunately, some of Vikings fans’ fears about Darnold came to fruition during the team’s playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card round, which may have made the pill of losing him in free agency a bit easier to swallow.
The last time fans saw JJ McCarthy on the field (outside of a preseason setting) was when he was leading his Michigan Wolverines to the 2023 college football national championship.
McCarthy skyrocketed up draft boards that year with his play for the Wolverines, and now he’ll look to make a name for himself on the NFL level with a talented roster around him.
As McCarthy mentioned, Jefferson has become known for his elite route-running ability, among many other traits that have made him a consensus top two wide receiver in the league along with his old LSU teammate Ja’Marr Chase.
The Vikings will kick off their 2025 season on the road against the divisional rival Chicago Bears on September 8.
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