KOC Highlights J.J. McCarthy's Offseason Work Ahead of 'Very Competitive Situation'

There is no Vikings player facing a more pivotal offseason than third-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy. As he stares down a future, seemingly, as Minnesota's backup QB, McCarthy has been putting in daily work at the Vikings' facility in order to perhaps give himself a chance to win back his job.

Minnesota landed Kyler Murray days into free agency, which presumably puts at least a temporary end to McCarthy's time as the Vikings' starter. However, Kevin O'Connell has unsurprisingly refused to say that Murray will just be handed the job. National reporters have continually insisted that it'll be an open competition, despite Murray's pedigree and McCarthy's struggles last season.

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"He's spent his time out in California. He has since come back to Minnesota," O'Connell said on Monday at the NFL's Annual League Meeting when asked about McCarthy's offseason. "He's been in the building working out, downstairs with the strength guys."

In his first season as a starter, McCarthy struggled with injuries and consistency. He completed just 57.6% of his passes for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions across 10 starts last season. Minnesota went 6-4 with McCarthy as the starter and overall finished with a 9-8 record on the season. It was rough enough that Minnesota's front office made apparent their desire to find a veteran to "compete" with McCarthy this offseason.

"We've actually had almost our entire quarterback room already spending time in the building," continued O'Connell. "Guys are really hungry to get going. Obviously the rules keep us from simulating what we'll be able to do when the offseason starts."

After landing Murray, the Vikings added more experience to their QB room when they brought back Carson Wentz. The two moves clearly signaled the team wasn't comfortable just having McCarthy as QB2, but wanted more insurance at the sport's most important position. To some, the moves also signaled the end of McCarthy's time in Minnesota, with trade rumors popping up in the days and weeks since the signings.

J.J. McCarthy | Yannick Peterhans / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It's a significant falloff for a guy who was drafted No. 10 overall in 2024, and for someone who O'Connell once dubbed the "franchise quarterback." So, what are McCarthy's long-term prospects in Minnesota? That's going to be the question that hovers over the team all offseason and throughout the 2026 campaign. For O'Connell, he expressed hope and positivity about the work McCarthy has put in this spring.

"I think J.J. has had a really good offseason," said O'Connell. "I think he's got perspective now. In a lot of ways those 10 games, albeit we would love to be talking about 30-plus games of starting, he definitely has experience. He knows what it's felt like to go in there and do some things at a really high level. Now, it's just about consistency and about being in a competitive situation. Not for any other reason than to continue the arc of trying to become the best player he can possibly become. I think he's going to have a really good offseason. I think it's going to be a very competitive situation."

McCarthy spent time working with QB guru John Beck out in California. He's working on his body with the Vikings' strength staff. Now, it will be up to him to show improvement when offseason practices begin at TCO Performance Center this spring and at training camp this summer.