Vikings’ J.J. McCarthy has ‘star quality’ but fine-tuning details | Pro Football Talk | NFL on NBC

Vikings’ J.J. McCarthy has ‘star quality’ but fine-tuning details | Pro Football Talk | NFL on NBC

So, let’s talk about the team that plays in Minneapolis, the Minnesota Vikings. Four and five. Give me your big picture assessment of of where this team is and where this team is heading. From a big picture standpoint, it would be great one day. Um, and and granted, you know, we’re four starts into it with JJ McCarthy. It’d be great one day if we’re all singing, “Baby, I’m a star.” Uh, because he has star quality to him. uh his he makes some throws in some of these games that are just unbelievable. But, you know, if you if you look back at at the context of some of the great quarterbacks in the history of the NFL, you know, like Josh Allen in 2018 when he debuted, he’s so much better now uh than he was in 2018 when when threw his first four games. I think he threw one touchdown and like three, four interceptions. Fran Tarkington, one of your I remember a good I I I know I remember a good game Josh Allen had in 2018 as a rookie in Minnesota when his team was 17point underdogs and he was literally jumping over people. I remember that game well. Sorry. I knew when I brought that up the uh the L at US Bank Stadium where he’s leaping over Anthony Bar to get into the end zone. I I knew I cut my own proverbial throat on that. All right. How about Fran Tarkington? One of your all-time favorites. Uh France in the Hall of Fame. uh in Fran’s first four starts, not his first four games, his first four starts, one touchdown, six interceptions, completed 50% of his passes, went on to host Saturday Night Live, do Monday Night Football, and get into the Hall of Fame. Uh this takes time. So, Baby, I’m a Star will be associated with JJ McCarthy one day. That’s part of the big picture approach, getting guys back uh to good health. Uh that’s been of late. Uh they get back uh the uber important Andrew Vankel in the Lions game and they win at Ford Field. All right. Now, they they played the Ravens tough last game. There were some things that obviously the eightball starts and some other things that uh that didn’t exactly work out the way of a team that’s going to absolutely win a game. So, they’re still fine-tuning some details with getting all these players back. Uh but this is a this is a team that’s undefeated in the division. They’ve already beaten Chicago once. They found a way to win at Fordfield for the first time in Okonnell’s uh coaching career here. He’s six and one against the Bears. And their response off losses, but but losses that you know are are curious like home opener Sunday Night Football for you guys at Football Night in America didn’t score a touchdown. Go to Lad Mccony’s uh place and and just that was ridiculous what happened on that Thursday night. And then against Baltimore, he got those eight false starts. So when they’re uh when there’s phenomena that pops up that’s strange and of the unseen realm so to speak, they bounce back really really good. They killed Cincinnati. They went to Ford Field and won and I fully expect them to win this weekend. You know, Phenomena is kind of like what precipice is to Chris Sims. You used phenomena yesterday when I was on your show 9 to noon cornfields time KFAN. the correct plural of phenomenon. Phenomena. So that’s been your thing this week. Is there a Prince song named Phenomena? If there wasn’t, there should be. There may be one lurking in this treasure trove of unreleased. Wouldn’t that be something if there is a Prince song that’s still to be released called Phenomena? Let’s just let’s just be straight here. Uh Prince Rogers Nelson is one of the greatest overall artists in the history of all music. He played every instrument on all of his albums. He sang basically almost every track on all the songs. Uh he triggered careers for people that, you know, ended up being big time. And um and and with Prince, uh he um I don’t know, he has a black album. It’s called the Black Album from the 80s that that wasn’t released and has some really cool songs on it, but none called Phenomena. Eight false starts is of the unseen realm. As as the reading of, let’s say, the grid iron gospel goes, the unseen realm would include eight false starts in a game. The first time a home team has done that since 2009. So that that’s abnormal. And when the Vikings have had abnormal moments, Michael, I’m telling you, they bounce back big. I saw some suggestion that maybe the Ravens were up to some sort of shenanigans. The Ravens disputed that. How do you get eight false starts? Well, the um I I have the privilege of having head coach Kevin Okonnell on my radio show every Thursday for about a half hour. Uh 9 to noon KFAN at 11:00 cornfields. Brought that up with him. He said nothing to it. Uh heard about it, thought about it that they’re so detailed within NFL facilities. I wouldn’t be surprised if they got the TV copy, took out the play-by-play guy and the analyst and just listened to the parabolic mic to see what was happening. So, um, he he said, “No, that, um, you know, that that’s really not a player in this thing.” Boy, that’s a great question. I mean, like when Justin Jefferson has only the second false start in his career, Justin’s only had nine penalties in his entire career. And and, you know, he had a false start. and and clearly, you know, even though they they haven’t really detailed like JJ’s cadence and people being in lock step with it, that’s all part of raising a kid quarterback, getting things squared away with the cadence and what’s handled at the line. I’m not saying that’s exactly it, but eight is abnormal. And holy cow, I mean, it it just worked on the last nerve of the head coach here. Is Justin Jefferson frustrated? And I say that because I spent a lot of time at the top of the show focusing on some recent words both on a Twitch stream and at his press conference from AJ Brown and he’s very open about his feelings. JJ seems to be a guy who internalizes. Is Justin Jefferson to your knowledge or estimation frustrated currently? I mean obviously it’s impossible to speak for him. um you know that there were some body uh language related things that people wanted to bring up from the Ravens game and you know there was a moment in the game where Marlon Humphrey had an interception after Justin stepped on his foot and fell and you know Justin didn’t really run after him for the tackle. Um I believe because Justin knew that that Marlin was touched down at that spot that that’s kind of an underrated part of the story here. Uh my answer from afar would be absolutely not. I mean, all of his touchdowns this year have come from JJ McCarthy. They permitted him to throw a pass during the game all the way across the field to McCarthy where if one guy makes a block, McCarthy gets to the end zone. That’s the end of the story. If one guy makes the right block, McCarthy gets to the end zone. So, those are the details and if one guy if one guy makes any block on that play, they had a total failance of blockers there and nobody blocked anyone. failings. Um, you know, another one for that is the vanguard in front of JJ McCarthy. But, um, you know, with with Jefferson to do things like that, I think he’s now six of 10 throwing, you know, but that’s really the first time they’ve done something like this in a McCarthy game. uh because you just th this is what I’m you know I’m kind of working my way through now up to the Bears game whether it’s talking to Okonnell players or just being at practice and stuff like that is how much are you able to utilize as coach of the year somebody who has run a very very high-end offense outside of the year he had to go through four quarterbacks um you know pretty much since he got here but how much do you have to pull back on it like change things when you’re raising a kid quarterback back. So, you know, I I don’t know if there if that’s an internal battle within the play caller. Uh because McCarthy threw the ball a lot last game. Um so, that’s pretty much where I am with with as this moves forward. Jefferson, I’ve never I mean, Justin loves JJ McCarthy. Just go back and watch the um watch the endzone celebration uh in the first game of the year against the Bears when McCarthy ran one in to win the game. uh watch Justin uh with this kid and and I see Justin with JJ a lot behind the scenes. I Yeah, I’d bet everything I have he’s not frustrated. My estimation from afar, I feel like it works well when Kevin Oonnell tailors the offense to JJ McCarthy, and it doesn’t work as well when it feels like he’s trying to to get JJ McCarthy to better fit the preferred offense. Against the Lions, good mix of run and pass, and it worked. against the Ravens, it just felt like it was skewing more toward the pass, not the same commitment to the run. I just think that for JJ McCarthy to get the most out of his abilities, the running game can’t be ignored and overlooked. And in the games where the running game has been a big part of the offense, things have gone better. Is that is that accurate, inaccurate, or incomplete? I’m not going to say it’s inaccurate, but I am going to say it’s incomplete because with those false starts, you know, they generally took place early on downs and contextually speaking, the Vikings would get like a first down. They they’d run for 11, then they’d run for 11 again. Then it’s first and 15. And you know, despite the running game working, there were situations where they were so far behind the chains, it kind of eliminates running in certain situations. So when when Kevin Oonnell after the loss to the Ravens at the press conference, excuse me, the Monday after the loss this last Monday, he said he thought long into Sunday night about a third and one call that he made that ended up being an interception and they had a running play in his back pocket on fourth and one he knew would have worked that I’m curious about that. Um because like what’s he thinking about late into the evening? Is he second guessing himself? I’ve never known Kevin to really second guessess himself. Ke Kevin, one of the many things that I like about Kevin Okonnell is his vulnerability and his ability to not only have to bang the fist down and be like my way or the highway. And I’ve seen that, you know, here in my time calling games for the team. Uh he’s very collaborative uh with his fellow coaches. And he’s also somebody, you know, who basically has had no problem saying, “Yeah, you know, I should have done something different here.” So, um, but, uh, when it comes to meshing the run in the pass with McCarthy, uh, the the down in the distance, the the number count in the box, the the rece, there’s so much that goes into it. It’s just why I say incomplete, is because it’s just unfair to look at a few situations, not necessarily from afar, those who live here and watch or listen to every single game, and just say, “You should run more. You don’t run enough.” I it’s it’s armchair quarterback which is beautiful because that’s age old and that brings people to games and you know and makes things so they’re not apathetic where nobody’s talking about you. So I can kind of understand what you andor the public says but I would need some really really indepth examples uh to to advance the conversation. All right I have to go but to summarize a conversation you and I had yesterday on your program. I have to go. The show’s almost over. The next three games are critical. Can’t do it every day. Bears, Packers, Seahawks. Bears, Packers, Seahawks. The next three games. Vikings got to win two of the next three or it’s over, right? Is that fair? I got to go. But is that fair? Yes or no? Yeah. Well, got to win two of the next three. The Seattle game, the Darnold game, that that’s I think the Vikings will get the next two. When they go to Seattle, it’s going to be weird playing Darnold, how hot he is. We’ll see if he can handle Flores. That’s a big one that may dictate things. Hi, it’s Mike Florio. Thanks for watching PFT on YouTube.

Mike Florio is joined by Paul Allen to sift through what he’s seen from J.J. McCarthy so far, how players like Justin Jefferson have interacted with him, what Kevin O’Connell is doing to develop him and more. #NBCSports #NFL #ProFootballTalk
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Vikings’ J.J. McCarthy has ‘star quality’ but fine-tuning details | Pro Football Talk | NFL on NBC
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