The Minnesota Vikings are officially moving forward with quarterback J.J. McCarthy and not Aaron Rodgers. Why italicize the word officially? The door is going to stay slightly open until he makes a decision about his future.
It’s been evident for the last year plus that whoever the Vikings took as their future quarterback would be given the keys relatively early. They have also spent in free agency to maximize the window for a rookie quarterback. Sure, the Vikings didn’t foresee McCarthy missing his entire rookie season with a torn meniscus, but he’s been involved the entire way.
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Camryn Bymum believes in J.J. McCarthy
As we move forward toward the 2025 season, the discussion will be focused on J.J. McCarthy. Is he ready to roll? Can he be the final piece to a Super Bowl run? It’s what everyone is going to be discussing.
One group we haven’t heard from yet are his teammates. While Camryn Bynum is now with the Indianapolis Colts, he appeared on Good Morning Football and spoke very highly of the second-year quarterback.
“JJ is somebody that I trust is just a leader. First and foremost, the way that even though, when he came in, he was still young guy, still competing with Sam, but the way that he carried himself just as a leader, but also still following the right way, and still listening and humbling himself to learn from the other guys. But the one thing that stood out to me from him, as soon as he got in, he was throwing that ball. He was a gunslinger in practice. First and 10, you know, simple, simple concepts. He’s throwing the deep ball, he’s trying to fire downfield, and that’s something I respected out of a rookie.
“And then going forward, after his injury, he’s sitting there in the defensive team meeting room with us, trying to learn our defense and just trying to learn any way he can. So just, he’s kind of a he’s kind of a maniac when it comes to just football overall. So I think the way that he’s carried himself while he’s hurt, I can only imagine how he’ll carry himself when he’s healthy, when they give him the keys to the program to be able to go and just carry himself as that leader, and they let him know, you’re the guy. We’re rolling with you. So I think J.J. is going to grow, and that’s somebody like I said I can trust.”
Having the endorsement of those around you is a huge factor in being a leader on the team, something that McCarthy is already showing himself to be. The only evidence we have of McCarthy being good at quarterback in the NFL is a dominant preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Continuing to grow in those areas should be a priority for McCarthy and if he does, the Vikings are in great shape.