McCarthy's QB coach apologizes to Cris Carter for disrespectful tweet

Greg Holcomb has been J.J. McCarthy's personal coach for a long time.

Dec 23, 2019; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Hall of Fame wide receiver and Minnesota Viking former player Cris Carter looks on prior to a game between the Vikings and the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium. | Brace Hemmelgarn-Imagn Images

We've reached the part of the 2025 Vikings season where their struggling young quarterback's longtime personal coach is apologizing to one of the franchise's all-time greats for calling him a clown on social media. Things could be going better.

If you haven't seen it, here's the context. On Sunday afternoon, NFL analyst Emmanuel Acho posted a video praising J.J. McCarthy's late go-ahead touchdown pass for the Vikings against the Bears. Hall of Fame receiver Cris Carter quoted the post by saying "Did you watch the first 59 mins?" with a thumbs down emoji. Greg Holcomb, who has worked with McCarthy for many years, responded to Carter by calling him a "f****** clown" on Sunday night in a since-deleted reply.

Greg Holcomb's response to Cris Carter. | Picture via: X (@vikingzfanpage)

That response made the rounds on social media, to the point where Holcomb came out on Wednesday and offered a lengthy apology to Carter in a statement.

"I want to offer my sincere apology for my recent remark directed toward Mr. Carter, in which I referred to him as a 'F'king clown' in response to his comments about the Vikings quarterback play," Holcomb wrote. "While I will always stand up for someone I love like my own son, my choice of words was completely unacceptable. My reaction was unprofessional, disrespectful, and far below the standards I hold for myself. I allowed my emotions to get the better of me, and in doing so, I disrespected not only Mr. Carter — a Hall of Famer and legend of the game — but also the Minnesota Vikings community.

"Cris Carter has earned a level of respect that my comments did not reflect, and for that, I am truly sorry. My intention was to defend someone I care deeply about, but the way I did so was wrong, and I take full responsibility for it. I appreciate the passion of the Vikings faithful, and I hope this apology demonstrates my respect for both Mr. Carter and the fan base. Moving forward, I will strive to communicate with the class, professionalism, and respect that the situation — and the people involved — deserve."

Update: Holcomb has since deleted the apology because he was asked to, he said.

I was asked to remove the letter from social media, but that does not diminish from my apology to Cris Carter & the Vikings fanbase.

— Greg Holcomb (@QBCoachHolc) November 19, 2025

Holcomb has worked with McCarthy since he was a seventh-grader in the Chicago suburbs. It's understandable that he wanted to stand up for his guy, but he obviously can't do that by calling Carter a clown. All Carter did was make an observation on the way McCarthy played prior to putting together one successful drive at the end of the game.

This entire situation is a rather silly one that would've never happened if McCarthy had simply played better in the Bears game. But here we are.

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