The Minnesota Vikings plan to give the reins of a team that won 14 games last season to second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy, the No. 10 pick of the 2024 draft. McCarthy did not play during the 2024 regular season, but Aaron Jones is confident in him.
Jones, the Vikings’ starting tailback, who re-signed on a two-year, $20 million contract in free agency this offseason, touted McCarthy’s past as reasons to be optimistic about his future.
According to Jones, McCarthy – the 2024 CFP National Champion – is a “winner.”
“If you look from high school through his time in college, he’s lost one career game,” Jones said on “Good Morning Football” on April 10. “I think it would have been might have been a quarterback battle if he didn’t get hurt. He’s different [mentally]. He’s a competitor. He wants to be great, and he’s hungry. So I think you’ll see it when he steps on the field.”
“He’s very methodical in everything he does. So he wasn’t able to play this year. He compiles a list of all the defensive players throughout the league and ranks them,” the Vikings’ star RB told the GMFB panel.
“He’s fully doven in, so I’m excited to even be in the backfield with him. Take some handoffs and have him throw it to me too.”
McCarthy is in Year 2 of a four-year, $21.8 million contract, giving the Vikings roster flexibility.
J.J. McCarthy to Benefit From Vikings 1-2 Punch of Aaron Jones, Jordan Mason RB
McCarthy figures to benefit from Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell planning to use a two-headed approach at RB with Jones and 2025 offseason trade acquisition Jordan Mason.
“The Vikings have Jones penciled in as their starting running back. They paid Jones more to return ($20 million over two seasons) than they did to acquire Mason from the 49ers and pay their new backup. By all accounts, however, Mason isn’t going to be a typical backup,” ESPN’s Kevin Seifert wrote on April 6.
“O’Connell could not have been more clear, both before and after Mason’s arrival, that he wants to pull back on Jones’ usage after he set career highs in snaps (700), rushing attempts (255) and total touches (306) last season.”
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