Kind of a big week for Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy. McCarthy was the NFC Offensive Player of the Week after leading the Vikings to a 27-24 comeback victory over the Bears in his NFL debut. Then he missed practice on Thursday to be with his fiancée for the birth of their first child.
Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said McCarthy was at the facility in the morning before departing for the hospital with his fiancée, Katya Kuropas. She made the announcement in May on Instagram that the couple is expecting a boy.
They've been together since high school at Nazareth Academy in La Grange Park, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago.
J.J. McCarthy finished his first game for the Minnesota Vikings with a flourish, refusing to let early struggles sidetrack his focus in the daunting environment of a night game on the road against a division rival.
Meanwhile, he gets to play at home for the first time, with the hero's welcome that will surely be a part of it.
“Extremely excited to hear that ‘Skol’ chant, just feel that energy, that exuberant environment,” McCarthy said, referencing the hands-over-heads clap Vikings fans have established as a rhythmic ritual that crescendos right before kickoff.
After rallying from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter at Soldier Field to beat the Chicago Bears and commence their first season with McCarthy as the starting quarterback, the Vikings host the Atlanta Falcons in their home opener on Sunday night.
McCarthy, who had meniscus repair surgery on his right knee last year that kept him out for the entirety of his rookie season, has played in two exhibitions at U.S. Bank Stadium, no-stakes games with nothing quite like the prime-time buzz that will encircle the 10th overall pick in the 2024 draft when he first steps on the turf.
If playing his first NFL game in his hometown in the face of heckling from a loud crowd, an interception return for a Bears touchdown, and a total of 85 yards by the Vikings offense through three quarters didn't overwhelm McCarthy, well, the hype from a friendly atmosphere and a national audience for the league's biggest weekly showcase ought not to distract him.
“It's definitely a lot quieter when we have the ball on offense. That's something that's going to be great, to be able to operate clean and crisp where everyone knows what they're doing with no miscommunication,” McCarthy said. “I'm definitely looking forward to a lot of things, just seeing the purple in the stands. At the end of the day, it's going to be a lot of fun.”
Other Minnesota Viking notes ahead of the opener on Sunday Night Football:
Jefferson stays steady
Not even two-time All-Pro wide receiver Justin Jefferson was immune to mistakes for the Vikings during their rough start against the Bears, letting a third-down throw slip through his hands and running a route short of the sticks on a third-down pass he caught. But Jefferson went low to snag McCarthy's first touchdown throw as a pro, pulling the Vikings within five points, and coach Kevin O'Connell said without prompting how proud he was of Jefferson's leadership and maturity.
“This is a guy who expects to go out there and make a play every single play, and we weren’t necessarily doing the things across the board, myself included, to have the success that we wanted,” O'Connell said. “Maybe at times, people want to see a Gatorade cooler thrown or a bench knocked over or something. It was just about poise. It was about understanding the things that were happening were as much to do with things we could correct by just doing our jobs a little bit better.”
There was also a McCarthy pick-six in the 3rd quarter of the Bears game that looked like it was all on the QB who threw into the flat to Jefferson, and ended up as a touchdown for Chicago. Jefferson says it's just as much on him, as it is on his young quarterback.
"I feel like that's all just mentally, I just got to slow my brain down, understand where I need to be at, the timing of routes," Jefferson explains. "And understanding that especially on that play on 3rd down, you know, they send the house and pretty much man-to-man all across the board, I gotta be better on detailing my route and getting to where I need to be at. Because that pick six could have changed the whole game with the momentum. So all of those things play a part and especially, it's a first time quarterback, so a lot of that can play a factor into bringing a quarterback down."
Jefferson added the rebound from McCarthy was special.
"It was really big for for J.J. and for the rest of the team to really see J.J. not really hanging his head on that," says the All-Pro receiver. "He was really encouraging the guys and say, 'hey look, let's bounce back on to the next play, and let's get this job going.' So, it's really great to see that from him."
New running back Jordan Mason shines
The Vikings resigned running back Aaron Jones in the offseason after a really solid first year in Minnesota for the former Packer. But the Vikings knew they were far too dependent on the 30-year old back and needed a solid backup option.
Enter former 49er Jordan Mason, a bruising back who ran for over 700 yards last year in San Francisco with starter Christian McCaffrey out with an injury. Mason ran 15 times for 68 yards in the win over Chicago and really helped spark McCarthy and the offense's rebound in the 4th quarter.
Jefferson says Mason is big, tough, and needed.
"He's a bully ball. I like to say he's a bowling ball as well," Jefferson said. "He just goes out there and just runs through everything. It doesn't matter who's in his way, he's gonna power through it. Just teaming that up with AJ, being able to be in the backfield, being able to be in the pass game, and then teaming up with having both of them out on the same field as well, we definitely have a powerhouse back there."
Injury updates
The Vikes didn't get out of Chicago unscathed. Not even close, with a quite lengthy list of important players on the injury report this week.
The biggest loss is probably linebacker Blake Cashman who pulled a hamstring. He's been placed on injured reserve meaning he's out at least four weeks. Eric Wilson stepped into the role and played a huge part in the win over Chicago including a blocked punt, but Cashman and his versatility will be missed.
The Vikings are also dealing with a couple of players in concussion protocol, both starters on the defense. Linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel didn't practice Thursday he has now been ruled out of Sunday's game. And starting cornerback Jeff Okudah is in a similar spot with a concussion and will be out.
It means other defensive players will need to step up Sunday against Atlanta.
"They did sign Fabian Moreau, who's been around and was on the team last year," Matthew Coller of Purple Insider said about the Viking's situation in the secondary. It's unfortunate with Okudah. He got hurt on the last play of the game. It was just a bad break for him, but they have a veteran on the practice squad, Fabian Moreau, they have Zemaiah Vaughn, who they were really high on during training camp, is on the practice squad."
Coller adds that the Vikings have plenty of defensive options with some positional flexibility.
"So this is more of a three safety defense than anything else, and Tavierre Thomas is kind of a special teamer," says Coller. "He played nickel corner for over 1,000 snaps in his career. Josh Metellus has played nickel corner a ton during his career. So I would expect to the three safeties, and what could be dependent a little bit is whether Harrison Smith comes back."
Harrison Smith, the longtime starting safety, has yet to play and has been listed as out due to an unspecified illness. Smith says patience is key. He's listed as questionable for Sunday.
"It's always been part of the game and as I've matured, it's easier to take more of like a cerebral approach instead of just being like, I'm gonna get after it, go crazy every day," he explained. "I'm trying to be smart about it, but also as productive as I can be to get back as quickly as I can be. And just knowing the realities of of time and and things like that. So yeah, I'm progressing and as long as I keep progressing, it's positive."
Another stalwart that is on the verge of getting back is left tackle Christian Darrisaw who is also questionable for the Falcon game. He's recovering from a torn ACL, and has been practicing. Darrisaw says he's working hard to get back, but he isn't frustrated by having to wait to get into game action.
"I feel like it's not hard at all," he said Thursday. "It's just really trusting it, and just knowing that the time is coming when I'll be able to be back out there on the field, as myself at the same level that I was playing at before the injury took place. So, just trust in the process."
New starting center Ryan Kelly is also on the injury report this week. He didn't practice on Thursday dealing with an injured toe.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.