Latest news with #SKORNorth
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
MN Vikings Insider Unable to Dig Up Any Dirt on JJ McCarthy
The Minnesota Vikings have gathered in Eagan today, at TCO Performance Center, for their first full-team workout of the offseason, officially named 'Voluntary Organized Team Activities', or what most refer to as OTAs. It's an exciting time for the Vikings, as coaches and teammates get their first look at redshirt rookie quarterback JJ McCarthy, after he impressed those around the organization last spring and summer, after being drafted No. 10 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft Advertisement Then, right as his training camp competition with Sam Darnold as starting to heat up, McCarthy went 11-of-17 for 188 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception (116.8 QB Rating) in his first preseason game against the Las Vegas Raiders, before realizing the next day that something was wrong with his knee. Credit: Photo courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings An MRI then revealed a tear his meniscus, which required surgery and a full season to heal. Now, all of that is behind JJ, as the Minnesota Vikings kick-start voluntary OTAs this week. So far, everything we've heard, both publicly and behind the scenes, regarding McCarthy, has been positive. Nothing negative anywhere to be found on JJ McCarthy In fact, according to Darren Wolfson (KSTP) on Tuesday's episode of Mackey & Judd (SKOR North), he couldn't dig up any negative dirt on JJ McCarthy, even if he was looking for it. Phil Mackey asked Wolfson if anyone, off the record, has tried to smear McCarthy's name. The answer… is no. Advertisement Not one person out of the many Minnesota Vikings contacts in Darren's rolodex has offered up one bit of negative information on the future face of the organization. Why? Probably because everyone loves the kid so damn much. Mackey: 'Outside of the injury, literally everything everyone has said about [JJ McCarthy] has been positive. So, I am wondering, is there anything [negative out there about him]? Like, what's the worst thing we can say about JJ McCarthy right now, 13 months in.' Wolfson: 'I'm not sure there is anything, Phil. No, I mean to answer your question, the answer is no. I have not. And trust me, I correspond with a lot of people. Now, if I did hear something negative, I prefer if somebody attaches their name to the statement, as opposed to me passing it along on background. But I'm just telling you, truthfully, no. I've not heard one bad thing about J.J McCarthy. You think about him leading IMG Academy to a national championship in high school, helping Michigan win a national championship in college. The two, like it's not a coincidence, put it that way. There is something about JJ McCarthy, however you want to define 'It Factor', JJ has it.' DMackey & Judd Show (SKOR North) Remember, the Minnesota Vikings believe so much in McCarthy's readiness to take over as QB1 immediately, that they were in no hurry to ink a requisite veteran to compete with the Michigan product during camp. Related: Kirk Cousins No-Shows Falcons McCarthy's biggest challengers in Minnesota's 2025 QB room, at least for now, are Brett Rypien and Sam Howell, young career backups, who are 28 and 24 years old, respectively. Howell and Rypien have combined to make 22 total starts through the course of their NFL careers. New Minnesota Vikings QB has the 'It Factor'… Yet, head coach Kevin O'Connell and the rest of the MN Vikings organization appear unphased by the fact that this redshirt rookie QB, with zero starting experience in the NFL, is about to be tasked with leading an otherwise Super Bowl ready roster into the 2025 season. Advertisement But if you have to ask 'why' KOC would be so willing to hand the keys over to JJ McCarthy, then you haven't been paying attention. Wolfson goes on to talk more about JJ McCarthy's 'It Factor' and just how special those inside TCO Performance Center really believe he can be.
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Minnesota Vikings OTAs Were Notably Intense; *Most* Absences Due to Prior Injuries
The Minnesota Vikings held their first round of full-team offseason workouts this week, where turnout was incredible. Harrison Smith was present, as was Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and, of course, redshirt rookie QB1 JJ McCarthy. Not only were most of the Vikings key veterans in attendance for voluntary OTAs, but according to Darren Wolfson (KSTP) during his latest scoop session on SKOR North, the practices this week in Eagan were notably intense. Minnesota Vikings OTAs were notably intense this week Not only did the longtime local reporter (who has attended hundreds of Vikings practices) notice the pumped up competitiveness, though. New CB Jeff Okudah, who previously played for the Dan Campbell-led Lions, expressed his surprise with how intense the 7-vs-7 practice sessions were too. 'I thought it was a pretty spirited practice, for OTA session number two. You know, just the competitive nature of it. I had a nice chat with Jeff Okudah after practice. He noted that and so I just thought that was pretty interesting for late in May. I did not expect to see some of the stuff we saw on Wednesday. You know, seven on seven and all that, just how spirited it was, how competitive it was. I did not expect to see that for May 28th.' Darren Wolfson – Mackey & Judd Show (SKOR North) Advertisement If you are a Minnesota Vikings fan reading this article or watching that scoop session, you have to be excited about how this first week of offseason workouts went. For all of the team's stars to show up ready to work and improve on what was an incredible 2024 season, it's clear O'Connell & Co. are already locked in and hungry for more success. Related: Kevin O'Connell Wins Another Award You know 100% that, not only are other teams missing a lot of big names on their OTA attendance sheet, but it's highly unlikely others are coming in this focused and determined to get better. That's a really good sign, especially for a Vikings team that sportsbooks and most pundits are picking to be a middling NFC squad in 2025. Most Minnesota Vikings OTA absences due to injury Of course, not every key Minnesota Vikings player for 2025 was on the TCO Performance Center practice fields this week. Most notably, Christian Darrisaw was missing at left tackle (replaced by Justin Skule) and Will Fries was replaced by Blake Brandel at right guard. Advertisement Of course, both Darrisaw and Fries are recovering from major leg injuries. The former went out in week 11 of last season with a major knee injury that required surgery. The latter broke his leg. According to what Kevin O'Connell told reporters in his presser, Fries isn't expected to practice until training camp. Fries, their top external signing in March, may not practice fully until training camp, O'Connell said, or nearly 10 months after sustaining a broken tibia on Oct. 6. The Vikings' top nine blockers may be set if they're content with Rouse, a 2024 sixth-round pick, as a hybrid tackle/guard. Skule, the 28-year-old former 49er and Buccaneer, replaces David Quessenberry as the backup tackle. Jurgens, a 2024 seventh-round pick, is the backup center. Ben Goessling (Star Tribune) Meanwhile, Darrisaw was working out with cleats on the sideline this week. The Minnesota Vikings hope he is ready to return for the start of the regular season. It's also worth mentioning the RG/LG alignment. Related: MN Vikings Insider Unable to Dig Up Any Dirt on JJ McCarthy With Fries out, Brandel slid over to right guard, while 1st round rookie, Donovan Jackson worked with the first team at left guard, where he is supposed to be competing with Brandel as a starter. Does that mean Jackson can be written in to start week one? No, but it is worth monitoring how many snaps Brandel gets on the left side, while Fries continues his rehab. The other injury absence was Rondale Moore, who continues his rehab from a torn ACL. Not only is he expected to compete for the WR3 job, if healthy, but he could be a factor in the return game too. Where in the world is Isaiah Rodgers…? The only non-injury OTA absence that was mentioned by reporters who were in Eagan this week was new CB Isaiah Rodgers. In his absence, the aforementioned Okudah and second-year 2024 undrafted free agent signee Dwight McGlothern got reps with the first team defense. Mechi Blackmon got some run too. Coaches were getting long looks at Okudah, the former Lions top pick on his fourth NFL team, and McGlothern, last year's undrafted darling, with the first-team defense on Wednesday. Blackmon appeared to be getting some work, too, as he's 10 months removed from a torn ACL. Rodgers, the ex-Eagles reserve who got a two-year deal to play a bigger role in Minnesota, was not seen at practice. Ben Goessling (Star Tribune) It is important to remember that these workouts are 'voluntary' and we do not know why the newly signed corner was not in attendance. Nonetheless, it's news worth mentioning.
