What Kevin O'Connell said on Wednesday about J.J. McCarthy, Ravens, more

Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell spoke to the media on Wednesday, as he does every week in advance of the team's first official practice of the week. Let's go over some of the highlights from KOC, who answered questions about J.J. McCarthy, the challenge ahead against the Ravens, and much more.

On J.J. McCarthy

After his opening statement, O'Connell was asked, essentially, how much of their offense moving forward will be shaped around what they've seen out of McCarthy so far.

"I just think it's about doing things that he's comfortable doing right now," O'Connell said. "Pre-snap, post-snap, what we're asking him to do in the pass game. Where are the areas that we're continually working fundamentally, and where are the areas, throughout the ebbs and flows of games, where we see some of the inconsistencies that come with a young player who just made his third start? We're gonna try to do the things we think gives our offense a chance, but all that goes through a scope of what J.J. does well."

O'Connell also talked quite a bit about accuracy and the different types of throws that are required from McCarthy, whether it's a fastball or a slower pass with a certain amount of touch. That's been a frequent topic of discussion, as has McCarthy's lower-body mechanics. Then the conversation switched to the mental side of things, stemming from a call McCarthy made at the line of scrimmage early on against the Lions, where he checked into a screen pass for a conversion on third down.

"I've always thought J.J. is a very, very high-level processor of information," O'Connell said. "Whether it's protection calls and the things he has to have to make certain looks blockable and make it right. I've known that from the first time I sat down with him in Ann Arbor. That's what makes you so encouraged and excited about the fact that some of the things we're working through right now with a young player, totally normal, are the physical side of things. The fact that he's so high capacity and capable, mentally, of so much, is where you hope to see a young player grow within the same system for a long time, hopefully."

O'Connell's most notable quote about McCarthy on Wednesday, though, came when he was asked if his quarterback's intensity in the postgame locker room caught him off guard.

"It never catches me off guard," he said. "I just know to give him the football, deliver the message that I'd like to deliver, and then get the hell out of the way, for my own personal safety in that moment.

"You look around the locker room, I know I did, not only when I'm talking about him but after, when he's saying a few words, and you just see the guys look at him, they see J.J. McCarthy being himself. And that's all I've ever thought quarterbacks in this league need to do. Much like a head coach, you gotta be authentically yourself every single day, and he's absolutely that."

J.J. McCarthy is a complete psychopath pic.twitter.com/rzx8zdxfQ3
— Bussin' With The Boys (@BussinWTB) November 3, 2025

On the Ravens

After an upset win over the Lions, the Vikings face another stiff test this week against the Ravens. Baltimore is just 3-5, but two-time MVP Lamar Jackson is back after missing a month due to injury. Jackson threw four touchdown passes against the Dolphins last Thursday and has thrown 55 of them since the start of last season, with just five interceptions in that span. He's been the most efficient passer in football, not to mention his elite rushing ability.

"He's just such a weapon now on schedule," O'Connell said of Jackson. "When he's clean in the pocket, he's throwing in rhythm. Just playing the initial snap is going to be hard enough with the scheme that they run, and it's very well coached, and they're very physical.

"To me it's about disruption, and it's about getting him off the spot, and then it's the player that gets him off the spot is more than likely not going to be able to always make the play. So, who's the next guy there? And was there discipline in making sure you corral and keep him in the area that you have to, because he can change a game. Even if you've done it for 70 plays and you're in the fourth quarter, he can do it in a got-to-have-it moment and win the football game. So it's going to be a challenge."

Lamar Jackson — Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The Ravens' defense has struggled during their 3-5 start, particularly earlier in the season. They've looked better since trading edge rusher Odafe Oweh to the Chargers for safety Alohi Gilman, which allowed them to move All-Pro Kyle Hamilton closer to the line of scrimmage.

"They make the trade for another safety, really talented guy in Gilman, which allows Kyle Hamilton to then play pretty much predominantly the nickel spot, which they're playing a lot of nickel defense to basically every grouping," O'Connell said. "And then, that also allows (Marlon) Humphrey to stay out at the spot where he's incredibly impactful, at the outside corner spot."

The Ravens, who are led by Roquan Smith and Nnamdi Madubuike in their front seven, recently traded for Dre'Mont Jones from the Titans to address their need for more pass rush production.

On a quiet trade deadline

Tuesday's trade deadline came and went for the Vikings without any moves. As he alluded to on Monday, O'Connell said he feels like getting some injured players back in the lineup makes the Vikings feel like they're closer to the team they expected to be coming into this season.

"I know there were some calls and some things, but I thought Kwesi (Adofo-Mensah) did a really good job communicating and kind of letting us know kind of what some of the possibilities were and talking through those. It's a game-plan day (Tuesday), so we're pretty hard at work as coaches. But nothing really materialized.

"And like I said, we've kind of felt like — very similar to our opponent, probably, who dealt with some injury adversity, and now they're getting healthy and getting back to being the original team they thought they'd be, and they're a really good one. So we're hoping we're the same, and hoping and talking about it doesn't do a whole lot. We gotta go put consistency on tape every single week."

On J.J. McCarthy

On the Ravens

On a quiet trade deadline

More Vikings coverage