JJ McCarthy won a National Championship last season at the University of Michigan. He threw the 2nd hardest pass velocity at the Combine. McCarthy was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings with the 10th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. In fact, the Vikings traded UP to make McCarthy their QB of the future. That future may be further off than McCarthy hoped.

Free Agent QB signee Sam Darnold will, by all indications, the Vikings starter in game 1 and for the foreseeable future. Minnesota has “made it clear” that McCarthy is not ready to start, will be brought along slowly, and Sam Darnold is the starter. McCarthy’s path will be determined by Darnold’s play. If Darnold struggles, as one might assume would happen after joining his 4th NFL team when he signed with the Vikings, Kevin O’Connell’s hand might be forced to insert McCarthy sooner than he wants. As for now, McCarthy is still a first-rounder in Dynasty rookie drafts, and could be a valuable late QB3 in Best Ball formats.