The Minnesota Vikings earned a decisive victory over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday afternoon. However, instead of basking in a rare blowout win, fans wanted to know the state of the quarterback position.
It was a fair question. Carson Wentz managed the offense and posted a 129.8 passer rating during the 48-10 rout on Sunday. However, it had an interesting twist when Kevin O’Connell was non-committal about J.J. McCarthy returning to the starting role upon his recovery from the high ankle sprain.
Without a quote like “That’s my quarterback,” Vikings fans and reporters ran wild with their latest quarterback controversy. McCarthy may be the future, but this team is built to win now. If they bench McCarthy, it will only give credence to those who called him a bust after two games. Repercussions aside, the Vikings have a decision to make, and it could be resolved within the next two weeks.
You couldn’t have asked for a start better than the one Wentz provided on Sunday. While Joshua Dobbs threw hospital balls and Nick Mullens played YOLO football after Kirk Cousins‘ injury, Wentz played within the confines of the offense and moved the chains.
Even better? Wentz did a lot of the things that McCarthy didn’t do in the first two weeks. According to Pro Football Focus, Wentz’s average time to throw of 2.55 seconds was fourth among qualifying quarterbacks, trailing Trevor Lawrence (2.48 seconds), Marcus Mariota (2.38), and Aaron Rodgers (2.34). He also limited the damage with just one turnover-worthy play over 26 dropbacks.
Wentz’s 173 yards and two touchdowns didn’t indicate that he has replaced McCarthy as Minnesota’s quarterback of the future. But it was enough to make people wonder what would happen if Wentz keeps winning games.
The situation triggered a curious response from O’Connell during Monday’s press conference.
I think first and foremost, he’s got to get healthy. … And that also doesn’t require an answer on that question today. I think our goal was to win a football game [on Sunday]. We’re in the day after that, we’ve had our players in. We’re preparing for another top-tier opponent, and I think we’ve got to have another really good week of preparation.
O’Connell’s comments made sense, given McCarthy will likely miss the next two games with his injury. But while stating the obvious, he also invited a slew of purple-clad detectives to figure out if McCarthy is being benched for his performance in the first two games.
There’s a compelling case. While McCarthy’s injury was unfortunate, it also capped off a tough two weeks to begin his career. Outside of a Monday night comeback against the Chicago Bears, McCarthy held on to the ball too long. He took an average of 3.08 seconds to throw and often made poor decisions, leading to a 6.6% turnover-worthy play rate in the first two weeks.
CBS Sports’ Tracy Wolfson also caught people’s attention when she said McCarthy’s experience is basically what was expected to happen behind Sam Darnold last year. However, that was thrown off track due to his season-ending knee injury. Lost practice time, injuries to Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, and an offensive line that hasn’t had all five starters on the field at the same time in the first three games are also factors. As a result, McCarthy may just need more practice to perform well in games.
That’s where the alarms reach another level. The Vikings may not have put McCarthy in the best situation, pushing all their chips into the middle of the table after a 14-win season. But fans may also want to see the Vikings lie in the bed they made, turning down Aaron Rodgers and other options while reiterating their undying faith in a 22-year-old quarterback who didn’t practice last year.
Seeing McCarthy sit on the sideline would be another gut punch to fans who want to see him play. It may also create a case of jealousy, given that the Green Bay Packers have repeatedly produced quarterbacks over the past 35 years. When their young quarterback wasn’t ready to contribute, they had prime-level Brett Favre or an angry, MVP version of Rodgers to bridge the gap.
When many Vikings fans look at Wentz, they see a quarterback whose primary goal is to prevent the offense from collapsing. They don’t see a quarterback they feel can lead them into their toughest stretch of the season, which includes the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Chargers, Detroit Lions, and Baltimore Ravens out of the bye. They see a guy who was brought in a month before camp and someone who shouldn’t be supplanting McCarthy as the starter.
Aside from the boat-rowing contingent of Vikings fans pining for Max Brosmer, McCarthy’s situation has become more complicated than anybody wanted. It has led to the type of discussion saved for shows where people scream at each other for three hours. However, sometimes, the best answer is to let the games play out.
The next two games will see the Vikings face the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns’ stout defense. While Wentz played well against the Bengals on Sunday, getting the offense to perform well will be a little more challenging when they play on sloppy fields in Dublin and Ireland, against fronts with T.J. Watt and Myles Garrett.
If Wentz performs well, it could convince O’Connell to pump the brakes on McCarthy. They could give him some practice reps and become more comfortable with his surroundings. If he doesn’t, McCarthy could be ready to go, getting practice reps with his full cabinet of weapons and offensive linemen and leading his team into battle against the Eagles in Week 7.
It’s a storyline that will unfold over the next two weeks and could determine who is under center for the Vikings as they navigate the rest of the season.