The Minnesota Vikings are 3-2 after 6 weeks. This record isn’t that poor. But the concerning part is, head coach Kevin O’Connell needs to make serious plans while dealing with their quarterback room. The 10th overall pick (first-round) of the 2024 Draft, J.J. McCarthy, is dealing with injuries. Backup Carson Wentz has stabilized the team enough. However, as obvious, everyone wants to know the future plan for the starter.

While talking to guest host Tom Pelissero during the October 15 episode of The Rich Eisen Show, Good Morning Football co-host Jamie Erdahl praised the Vikings coach for being steady with the sophomore. “I do feel that him (McCarthy) having the two games experience and then even if it is a long break now, he can actually conceptualize what it means to be a starting quarterback,” she said.

“When he was sitting in meetings last year, he had no concept of what the speed of the game felt like, what the IQ demands were of the playbook. He was thinking it could be explained to him. Now he’s got a two-game sample size. I think he needs to be like 110% healthy before we…..get him in there. But they’ve got two games in five days next week, coming off a bye. So I think we see Carson for a little bit, and I’m okay with that.” This means O’Connell will have to wait, amid the growing pressure.

Pelissero revealed how O’Connell is under pressure to prove that he made the right choice last year. “We got to prove we picked the right guy out of the six quarterbacks. Let’s push him back out the moment he’s healthy. There’s a difference between healthy and ready, which is where I give Kevin O’Connell credit for doing the hard thing,” he added. And that’s 100% right. The coach wants his young signal caller to be totally ready before playing in the ultra-competitive league.

The bye week gave McCarthy enough time to interact with the coach and his teammates while recovering from the high-ankle sprain. But there’s a tough stretch of games coming up.

• Week 7 – Philadelphia Eagles at US Bank Stadium
• Week 8 – Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium
• Week 9 – Detroit Lions at Ford Field

That will definitely make it a harder decision for Kevin O’Connell as they aim to win more games and move up in the NFC North. J.J. McCarthy has been ramping up his practice with more focus on reps. But the major difference is the two games he played this year. As Erdahl also pointed out, now he has an idea of how the plays move and games get crazy in the league.

On the other hand, to achieve their best results, the Vikes are doing everything they can in practice.

Kevin O’Connell gives a heartwarming update

When McCarthy got injured, Kevin O’Connell turned towards the veteran Carson Wentz. He signed a 1-year $1.4 million deal with the Vikes in August after playing for the Kansas City Chiefs and Eagles previously. In 3 games as the starter this year, Wentz won 2 of them, with 69 of 100 passes completed (69% completion rate) for 759 passing yards, 5 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. But on Wednesday, October 15, the practice session saw him talking to McCarthy.

“I think this week will be massive for our whole team. But just to see J.J. back out there getting reps and working through the process of building that foundation back up (will be encouraging),” Kevin O’Connell said while updating fans that their starter is back to practice. Even the injury report listed McCarthy as a limited participant on Wednesday. Wentz also injured his non-throwing shoulder in the week 5 game, but had a full practice session.

Erdahl, though, suggested that the coach should use the veteran against the Eagles. However, the sophomores’ return to practice has sparked hopes of a comeback. After missing his entire rookie season because of a torn meniscus in the right knee, McCarthy delighted fans by becoming the NFC Offensive Player of the Week 1. He was the 11th Viking since 1984. He led the team to a victory from an 11-point deficit in the 4th quarter. Additionally, while preparing for the week 2 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, he welcomed his first child, a son named Rome.

Meanwhile, Wentz also became the first starter to start for 6 different teams in 6 consecutive seasons. So, the franchise is still not on the edge. However, they are now preparing for McCarthy’s comeback as the starters are getting ready for the tough schedule ahead. Kevin O’Connell must be hoping for some more wins until the young QB is back.