As Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy prepares to enter his first season as the team’s starting signal-caller, some are hoping that the results turn out similar to when the Kansas City Chiefs made the transition to Patrick Mahomes as the team’s starting quarterback in 2018.
Oddly enough, NFL Media’s Bucky Brooks recently compared McCarthy to Alex Smith, who was, of course, the guy Mahomes replaced in Kansas City.
Vikings fans might initially cringe at the comparison made on Monday’s episode of the “Move the Sticks with Daniel Jeremiah and Bucky Brooks” podcast, but Brooks’s explanation actually makes a ton of sense.
“[Multiple quarterbacks have] enjoyed a high level of success under Kevin O’Connell. I believe that continues, but I believe it continues in a different way with J.J. McCarthy.
To me, J.J. McCarthy is more like an Alex Smith type quarterback, meaning he’s talented enough, he’s athletic enough to do a bunch of different things, but he also understands how to play winning ball based on what he did at Michigan.
I think Kevin O’Connell, early, is not going to give him [a lot] and expect him to go win the game. I think he’s going to set the other guys to do it.
So, if we talk about [it] in our vernacular, he’s going to be a high-end trailer. If he operates like a high-end trailer for the Minnesota Vikings, where he lets the rest of the team carry him, the Minnesota Vikings can win a ton of games.
And then, as he gets comfortable, maybe he shows some of the playmaking ability at the end of his second year.”
Minnesota Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy compared to former NFL QB Alex Smith
Smith wound up spending a total of 14 years in the NFL, and he put together some solid seasons in his time as a starter for the San Francisco 49ers, Kansas City Chiefs, and Washington Commanders.
However, he entered the league with massive expectations after the 49ers selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft. Smith was never really able to live up to those expectations and his reputation was that of more of a game-manager type of quarterback during his pro career.
It sounds like Brooks’s comparison to Smith has more to do with how he thinks McCarthy will be used in the upcoming 2025 season. So, it’s not like Minnesota’s young quarterback is being projected to follow the path of Smith’s NFL career or anything like that, which should allow Vikings fans to breathe a little easier.