Minnesota Vikings fans, have you heard of J.J. McCarthy? Yeah, the 10th overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft. When the Vikings drafted him, sure, they were planning something extraordinary for the QB line-up, but a knee injury came out of the syllabus this season. Sadly, the guy’s out of his rookie season following a fully torn meniscus in his right knee. But that didn’t bother the Vikings and Kevin O’Connell, right?

When asked if the starting QB Sam Darnold will stay with the Vikings when McCarthy returns for the next season, the head coach has some pretty clear thoughts as he emphasized how important it is for him to highlight the plays that make his players shine. “I’m always highlighting the plays that a lot of our players do well,” O’Connell said. “So that their teammates can really wrap their mind around you.”

And honestly, you can’t blame him, considering the impeccable season the Vikings are having so far, with 2 losses and 14 wins. However, things will kinda get tense when McCarthy returns to the roster, no doubt there. But the good news is that McCarthy’s attending the meeting following his rehab after the injury. “JJ who’s doing a great job, you know, and has really put a stamp on where he’s at in his rehab process and now is so visible and a part of the meeting process,” the HC said.

That said, now the Minnesota team has five guys on the QB lineup, and it seems like they’re having issues that most of the team would have wanted on their roster. “So we’ve got really five Guys right now in our building that are constantly improving and getting better and just being comfortable and more comfortable as quarterbacks for the Minnesota Vikings,” O’Connell further said as McCarthy attended a meeting about his role in the team. Well, the Minnesota team does have Brett Rypien, Nick Mullens, and Daniel Jones on their roster.

While McCarthy’s already ended his rookie season before it even kicked off, the Vikings are fully sorted when it comes to the QB concerns. Thanks to Darnold’s leadership, the Vikings are now in the playoffs and are on a quest to take the NFC North crown on Sunday against the Detroit Lions.

Kevin O’Connell and Sam Darnold will play together

The Vikings signed Darnold for a year contract in the off-season last year and it turned out to be one of the best seasons for the Minnesota team so far. The 27-year-old is leading the team from the front, loud and clear, no questions asked. The guy started all games for the Vikings and no doubt, his numbers are proportional to the team’s performance.

And when asked how much confidence he has and how much fun he’s having leading this offense, the QB stated, “I’ll say this it’s fun. It’s fun playing football for this team, for this group, for this organization, and for the guys in there in this locker room. Sure, Darnold has signed just a year contract with the team, the reports suggest that he’s gonna get a mega contract extension from the team anytime soon given his performance and of course the fun he’s having with the team.

Moving forward, Darnold and the Minnesota are preparing for the Sunday showdown against the Lions and he’s doing what he’s supposed to do; thinking about the game and the opportunity. “You know whatever happened last week and the week before that, like it doesn’t matter right now,” he said. “All that matters is this game, this opportunity, and you know that’s all I’m thinking. Well, the Vikings sure have some roster concerns in the last few weeks.

As it stands, T.J. Hockenson and Dalton Risner were ruled out earlier but are in their evaluation windows. While Hockenson suffered a knee injury in week 8, Risner injured his back in the same game against the Los Angeles Rams.

Well, as far as the QB is concerned, Darnold has racked up over 4,000 yards on an average of 8.2 yards per carry and scored 35 TDs. And now leading his team to a triumph over another 14 teams will secure the Vikings their NFC North crown and number 1 seed in the NFC, and that’s what Kevin O’Connell and Sam Darnold must be eyeing right about now.