Vikings rookie QB JJ McCarthy to miss season after surgery for meniscus tear
By Ben Morse, CNN
(CNN) — JJ McCarthy’s career as the Minnesota Vikings starting quarterback will be delayed until next season after it was revealed Wednesday the rookie’s surgery for a meniscus tear in his right knee was a “full repair.”
McCarthy, who was drafted 10th overall by the Vikings in the 2024 NFL Draft, suffered the injury in Minnesota’s first preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday, head coach Kevin O’Connell said Tuesday.
Because surgery required a full repair, McCarthy will miss this season, the team announced on social media Wednesday.
The 21-year-old quarterback wrote on social media Tuesday: “Love you Viking nation. I’ll be back in no time. Amor fati.”
McCarthy was not a participant in Minnesota’s Monday practice after complaining of knee soreness.
O’Connell did not confirm whether there was a certain play in Saturday’s game – McCarthy’s debut for the Vikings – where the injury occurred. McCarthy threw for 188 yards and two touchdowns against Las Vegas.
“I credit JJ for obviously being able to continue to play. He did not come out of the game from the injury,” O’Connell said. “He finished his night with his second touchdown pass and at that point had reached the snap count I was hoping to get him for the game. At no time did he think it was something that would take him out of the football game, not allow him to play.”
The Vikings had traded up to 10th in the 2024 NFL Draft to select McCarthy after he led the University of Michigan to the 2023 College Football Playoff National Championship against the University of Washington.
The Vikings also signed veteran quarterback Sam Darnold during the offseason, with the 2018 No. 3 overall pick now expected to start the season for Minnesota.
O’Connell explained how McCarthy’s injury interrupts his “very clear plan” which he had for his quarterback room.
“[I] really was going to continue through that with JJ on the field – getting more and more reps and obviously coming off a performance like he had where we felt strong about where he was at in his development process,” O’Connell said. “So really, you hurt for him in the short-term here because he had such a daily process, focus, all those things I was really looking for in a young player at the position.”
O’Connell said his confidence in Darnold is “very, very high.”
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
