For the second time in his young career, J.J. McCarthy’s throwing hand is the biggest question mark in the Vikings‘ locker room. Though this time, he is not expected to be sidelined for Sunday’s divisional game against the Chicago Bears. McCarthy was a limited participant in Wednesday’s practice after sustaining a bruised right (throwing) hand late in the team’s 27-19 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. The injury occurred when his hand hit a helmet while following through on what he called one of his better throws of the day.

Recently, the QB was seen wearing a protective pad on the right during practice on Wednesday. He was even spotted making one big adjustment, tossing the ball with his left hand, as reported on X. 

“#Vikings QB JJ McCarthy tossing the ball left-handed after reports came out about wearing a wrap on his throwing hand: (@SeifertESPN)”

The focus on J.J. McCarthy’s bruised throwing hand is heightened by the significance of this weekend’s matchup: a divisional clash against the Chicago Bears that doubles as the second meeting between two top quarterbacks from the 2024 draft class, McCarthy (Vikings, 10th overall) and Caleb Williams (Bears, 1st overall).

For the Vikings, their young quarterback’s performance will have to be good. But looking at his last game stats, it doesn’t seem like an easy task. In that game, he completed just 20 of 42 passes (47.6%) and threw two interceptions against zero touchdowns in that game, a stat line the team absolutely needs to improve upon.

JJ McCarthy looks forward to fixing his mistakes in the next game against the Bears

The Minnesota Vikings are having a tough time getting their offense to work, and a lot of the problem seems to be with their new QB, J.J. McCarthy.

The team is feeling a mix of success and disappointment right now. After scoring a win against the Detroit Lions, they lost to the Baltimore Ravens, 27-19, because their offense stopped working after the first few plays. Analysts Charles McDonald and Nate Tice added that McCarthy displayed two very different playing styles within each game. They specifically pointed to the flow of the game, noting:

“They have a game-flow problem. The first two drives, basically scripted stuff, J.J. is fifth in EPA per dropback and first in air yards per attempt. But after that, it falls off a cliff.”

McCarthy excels when running the offensive coordinator’s carefully prepared, scripted plays. However, once the Vikings are forced to deviate from the script and adjust on the fly, McCarthy’s performance tanks. His interception rate and sack totals dramatically spike when he has to improvise.

Nate pointed out that these problems are normal for a young quarterback, but he also noticed a few specific issues with McCarthy that he had even in college. His throwing motion takes a little too long, which gives the defense a chance to knock the ball down. He sometimes thinks too long about where to throw the ball, which makes his passes arrive late.

“It’s very young guy stuff,” Tice said. “Those are the plays he’s comfortable with because he practices them the most. But when the defense adjusts, and you have to react, that’s where the struggles come in.”

Right now, McCarthy and the Vikings’ offense are ranked near the bottom of the league, according to PFSN reports. However, there is some good news: Against the tough Ravens defense, he was only sacked once. The Vikings’ main goal now, as they prepare to play the Bears in Week 11, is to figure out how to keep their offense stable and effective throughout the game, not just at the start.