Ryan Kelly is 32, only 10 years older than J.J. McCarthy. Still, McCarthy sees him as a paternal figure on the Minnesota Vikings’ roster.
“He’s such a tremendous human being and has such a father presence to him,” McCarthy said at practice before Minnesota’s 34-26 win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. “You just feel good when he’s in the huddle.”
Kelly was part of Minnesota’s first-year infrastructure plan for McCarthy. After watching the middle of the offensive line collapse on Sam Darnold in the playoffs last year, the Vikings added Kelly and Will Fries from the Indianapolis Colts in free agency and drafted Donovan Jackson.
Jackson has looked worthy of the 24th-overall pick. Fries has been a steadying presence, playing in all of Minnesota’s games this year. However, Kelly has only played in seven games due to recurring concussion issues. Still, he’s had a meaningful impact upon his return.
“[Kelly’s] ability to recognize the fronts, recognize the pressures, know the [opponent’s] tendencies, he’s a tremendous guy to have, and it’s an honor to play with him every day,” said McCarthy.
“There could be a run play that has a can criteria, Sam on the ball,” McCarthy continued, “and he sees it right away [and] says, ‘Can it. Can it.’ And it’s just like, I don’t have to do any thinking.”
When McCarthy “cans” a play, it means he calls an audible because of how he, or Kelly in this case, reads the defense pre-snap. “Sam” is the strong-side linebacker in the defensive formation.
Like any quarterback in modern football, McCarthy has a multi-step process he must follow before snapping the ball. He calls two plays in the huddle, both of which are multi-syllabic instructions for each of the skill players on the field. The first is the primary play, and the second is the audible that McCarthy can “can” to, depending on his pre-snap read.
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Once he breaks the huddle and lines up for the snap, McCarthy surveys the field, trying to determine the defensive alignment. Depending on the opponents’ formation, he will choose whether to “can” the primary play. Then he sets his protection or tells the offensive line how to guard the incoming rush.
McCarthy will then call for the ball using cadence, or a set of words to tell the center to snap the ball. In an instance where he breaks the huddle late and the snap clock is running low, he may yell “turbo” or clap his hands to call for the ball instead of using a cadence.
“I mean, it’s a lot,” Kelly acknowledged. “It’s not just, ‘Hey, one play, call it and go’ all the time. It’s not the easiest offense to learn, right? It’s a little unorthodox.
“You got to tell the guys to play. Sometimes the play’s this long,” Kelly continued, spreading his hands apart to indicate the long play calls. “You got to break the huddle, look at the play clock. See whatever can-kill criteria is up that week. Recognize, remember that. Get to it. Remember the snap count. Take the right footwork.
“It’s a lot more than people think, right?”
Kelly spent the first nine years of his career with the Colts. He mostly played under Frank Reich (2018-22) and, most recently, Shane Steichen (2023-24). Neither of them is from the Sean McVay tree, like Kevin O’Connell. Therefore, Kelly had to learn a new offense while helping usher McCarthy through his first season as a starter.
“It’s a little different than what I’m used to,” Kelly admits. “It’s a little unorthodox the way we do it. It’s impressive that he’s able to think of [everything]. The run list is this long, and almost every single play has got some kind of X, Y, and Z.
“It’s a lot to think about. That play’s going to come in, and you’ve got to read it week after week, day after day, day after day, so that you know as soon as he starts calling the formation, he already knows the rest of the play call. He knows what he’s looking for.”
X is the star receiver, Y is the tight end, and Z is the secondary receiver, like Jordan Addison. O’Connell’s complicated offense can break defenses. However, it’s a lot to process, even for a veteran like Kirk Cousins when he was in Minnesota.
That’s why McCarthy had trouble breaking the huddle in Chicago and against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2. It may also explain the procedural penalties in their Week 9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, which marked the beginning of the end of their season. It could also explain why McCarthy looked so muddled in the loss in Green Bay two weeks later, which ended it.
However, McCarthy has come alive, even as Minnesota’s playoff hopes have dwindled to zero. He’s starting to show mastery of the offense and has been more decisive with his throws, albeit against the Washington Commanders and Dallas Cowboys’ lousy defenses.
Kevin O’Connell has made things easier for McCarthy by reducing the syllables in the calls and having him focus less on his mechanics. As a result, McCarthy has shown glimmers of being a franchise quarterback. Having Ryan Kelly back doesn’t hurt, either.