At 6–8, the plane rides are long. The practices are long. The wait for a fresh start … long.
But on Sunday night in a 34–26 win over the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football, the Vikings saw a glimpse of hope from 22-year-old J.J. McCarthy. The 2024 first-round pick, who has either been injured or struggled for much of his first two NFL seasons, is starting to show potential that he can grow into a player Minnesotans can believe in.
Last week against the moribund Commanders, McCarthy threw for 163 yards and three touchdowns in a 31–0 whitewashing of Washington. Coming into Dallas as significant underdogs, the Vikings won again on the strength of their offense with McCarthy going 15-of-24 for 250 yards and two touchdowns, a running score and an interception on a tipped pass.
For Minnesota, it’s the first time since Weeks 14 and 15 of last season that the offense has put up 30 points in consecutive games. And while it’s a small feat in a year marred by injuries, ineffectiveness and noncompetitive football post-Halloween, McCarthy’s play is reason to believe better days are ahead for a franchise which had to spend much of 2025 kicking itself for letting Sam Darnold leave for the Seahawks in free agency.
McCarthy still has plenty of proving to do. Beating the Cowboys and Commanders with solid performances is a good thing. It’s also being realistic to mention those defenses ranked 29th and 31st, respectively, in total yards allowed per game coming into Sunday. In the final three weeks of the regular season, Minnesota draws the Giants, Lions and Packers, giving McCarthy a bit of a stiffer test.
And for Minnesota, McCarthy looking the part across that span would be meaningful in multiple ways.
Yes, the obvious is suddenly the gaping hole at quarterback wouldn’t feel so glaring. But it would also mean some security for general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, who has been getting heat after four draft classes under his watch that have essentially netted receiver Jordan Addison, kicker Will Reichard, edge Dallas Turner, guard Donovan Jackson and little else. If McCarthy doesn’t pan out, that’s another negative mark on a résumé that desperately needs more draft wins.
McCarthy’s improved play would also better the chances of not having a disgruntled Justin Jefferson. While the Vikings have Jefferson under team control through 2028 after giving him a four-year extension worth $140 million, things could get dicey if Jefferson is stuck with low-level quarterback play.
Over the past two weeks, Jefferson has caught four balls for only 33 yards and zero touchdowns. That kind of production is still a major problem. However, if the team is winning and Jefferson’s stats rise over the next three weeks, that should help provide an increase in patience for arguably the NFL’s best receiver.
Through nine games this season, McCarthy has thrown 11 touchdowns with 11 interceptions. He’s still completing well below 60% of his attempts and his QBR was 28.4 coming into the win over Dallas. In terms of EPA, his number of -66.1 was better than only Cam Ward, Geno Smith and Joe Flacco coming into Week 14.
If McCarthy can show those numbers are representative of a player who is in the past, the Vikings can enter the offseason with confidence and optimism as the front office looks to surround him, not replace him. But if these wins and his performances over the Commanders and Cowboys are nothing more than a brief respite from the play he’s put forth for much of 2025, then everything goes back on the table.
In a lost season with nothing but pride and the future to play for, everything from the film sessions to the tarmac feels like a slog.
But if McCarthy proves worth the investment, everything starts to feel shorter. Most of all, the timeline for contention in Minnesota.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as In a Lost Season, J.J. McCarthy Is Starting to Give Vikings Hope for the Future.