J.J. McCarthy: 'It's been really hard, if I'm going to be straight up'

Yahoo

04-02-2025

Minnesota Vikings rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy has been out of the spotlight almost entirely since undergoing season-ending surgery to repair a torn meniscus in August, but he was back in the media limelight Tuesday as a guest on The Rich Eisen Show.
Cliff notes: McCarthy confirmed that he's well ahead of schedule in his recovery and that's he's not sure if he'll be the starting quarterback next season. He also discussed what it's like being a quarterback with Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Here's the majority of the conversation with questions from Eisen and McCarthy's answers....
Eisen: How are you feeling?
McCarthy: I'm feeling fantastic, Rich. Couldn't be in a better spot, honestly. Mentally, physically, spiritually. We're just continuing to stack days at this point and with around 67 days until OTA, we've got a lot of time but not a lot of time to waste.
Eisen: I'm hearing you're ahead of schedule. Is that a fair way to term it?
McCarthy: That's very fair.
Eisen: What's the last year been like?
McCarthy: For me, it's been really hard, if I'm going to be straight up. Going from 15-0, national champion to your season ending. Being a part of, but somewhat not a part of, being on I.R., that beautiful season that Minnesota had last year and that we had. Just being able to really witness and experience what it was like to be a successful team in the NFL and also see some ways that we can always improve. For that, it was an invaluable experience and ultimately a blessing. It really wasn't a blessing in disguise the more I look back on this past year, but the hardest part was seeing all my brothers go out there every single Sunday, Monday, Thursday and not be able to put up the armor with them.
Eisen: What did you glean from watching this season?
McCarthy: In the moment of stillness that is an injury for an athlete, there's a lot of ways you can capitalize on that time. For me, it was all the busy work, letting me put as much effort as possible on the front end so by the time I'm playing next year that week-to-week workload isn't as much in terms of, every single player we've played, scouting report on their character traits, athletic traits, background, all that. Defensive coordinator reports every single week. I did the the 17-18 games that we had of those teams, but this offseason's big, I'm just getting the rest of the teams. It was a lot of that busy work I could anticipate rookie quarterbacks would go through playing. Not having that foundational knowledge on the team, on the players, I wanted to make sure I had a well-rounded approach going into each week and a well-rounded understanding of what I was going to get.Eisen: What has Kevin O'Connell told you about what's next?
McCarthy: With Coach O'Connell, he's one of the most genuine guys I know. Our conversations have been nothing about the greatest thing for the Minnesota Vikings. At the end of the day, there's a lot of things that are certainly above my pay grade and some things above his pay grade. He's the one that has the pen last on the field, and that's about all I know. Just being able to be in the moment with him every time I get the chance to interact with him and really pick his brain, because those are a lot of moments that I can mess up thinking about the future, thinking about the uncertainties that I can't do anything about. It's really just optimizing each moment and each time I have with that great mind of the game, but most importantly, a great fricken human being.
Eisen: You're just going to have to sit back and learn what the plans for Sam Darnold are?
McCarthy: Yes, sir. I'm just going to control what I can control and attack each day with enthusiasm unknown to mankind.Eisen: How does that sit with you?
McCarthy: All I could ask for is a fair opportunity. That's the one thing that I feel like everybody's given and it's fundamental. When money gets involved, things get complicated and reps get skewed and there's different things that come into the whole political world that everyone talks about, but I really just have to focus on controlling what I can control. My feelings don't matter, I'm not getting any grace, there's no sympathy. This is the big leagues. Just approach it with a steadfast, narrow tunnel vision on the task at hand, which is that workout that day, that film study, that extra little thing I'm going to do for my fiancee that day and just really just staying in the moment because that gives me the most peace of mind through all of this.
Eisen: What's it like being a quarterback with ADHD?
McCarthy: I feel like ADHD has gotten a bad rap. There's a lot of different things coming out in the medical world that I have no right to speak on, but a lot of people could do the research for themselves and realize that it is somewhat of a superpower. You look at hyper-focus and all the benefits of that when you actually love something, you're actually passionate about it, you lock in so much more intensely. The downside of ADHD is obviously the attention deficit and just being able to concentrate on going to the fridge, getting a water. That's it, nothing else. You don't have to go finish that, you don't have to go start that, you don't have to remind to call him back. Just do that.
Note: We didn't include the parts of the interview that included paid sponsorship mentions. The full interview will be uploaded to the Rich Eisen YouTube channel.