J.J. McCarthy looked quite healthy when he jumped to avoid Justin Jefferson on the sideline after the All-Pro receiver slid out of bounds following a catch.
McCarthy was the emergency No. 3 quarterback for the second straight game while Carson Wentz took another beating during Minnesota’s 37-10 loss to the Chargers on Thursday night. Wentz showed guts and toughness. And he looked overwhelmed, and far from healthy enough to win NFL games.
"I've felt better. That was a tough one," said Wentz after the game. "Thursday nights are always tough, but that was a little extra tough. But, yeah, I've felt better, but we're walking right."
Was McCarthy held out because he hasn’t fully recovered from his ankle injury or was Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell protecting him behind an injury-riddled offensive line that allowed Wentz to take a pounding?
Only O’Connell knows that answer.
"Carson's a veteran player, he understands some of our circumstances tonight," O'Connell did explain. "I think it's very difficult to ask a rookie to go in there for his first performance and you have to be kind of weathering it a little bit for the group. I I did think about that at different times in the game."
O'Connell added a vote of confidence for Thursday's backup, rookie Max Brosmer, but it was pretty clear he wasn't going to go to him unless absolutely necessary - or in full mop-up duty which it got to in the last few minutes of the fourth quarter.
But now it’s time to make a decision. Wentz played well in his first three starts, going 2-1. But the veteran quarterback struggled last week against the Eagles and again vs. Los Angeles while playing with a shoulder injury.
At times, Wentz looked like the 2017 version of himself who finished third in NFL MVP voting. Other times, he played like the 2020 version who got benched for Jalen Hurts in Philadelphia. It didn’t help that protection was an issue.
The Vikings are 3-4, already matching their loss total from last season when Sam Darnold filled in for McCarthy.
While Darnold is thriving in Seattle, the Vikings have to figure out if McCarthy is the future. McCarthy had an excellent second half in his NFL debut in Week 1, leading the Vikings to a comeback win over the Bears. He was awful the following week before his injury.
The Vikings will have a mini-bye ahead of next week’s game at Detroit. It would be a difficult spot for McCarthy to return, especially if the offensive line doesn’t get any reinforcements.
Still, he was the No. 10 overall pick in 2024 and the Vikings need to know if he’s the guy going forward.
“If J.J. is healthy, J.J. will play,” O’Connell said. “That's been the case since the injury. That's always been my mindset.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.