Former Michigan standout J.J. McCarthy is entering his first season as the Minnesota Vikings' starting quarterback.
After being selected with the 10th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, McCarthy "red-shirted" his rookie year in the NFL, thanks to a torn meniscus suffered in the preseason.
After a year of holding the clipboard and watching Sam Darnold guide Minnesota to the playoffs, expectations and excitement are through the roof for the Vikings signal-caller, and tight end T.J. Hockenson fueled the fire with his recent comments.
T.J. Hockenson Makes Tantalizing Comparisons for J.J. McCarthy
Hockenson, who only appeared in 11 games last season, thanks to a torn ACL and MCL in 2023, figures to be a key piece in a Vikings offense that is dealing with some inconsistency at the wide receiver position.
While Justin Jefferson is one of the best wideouts in football, he has missed most of training camp and all of preseason with a hamstring injury. Jordan Addison won't be available for the first three games of the season thanks to a suspension, and Rondale Moore is out for the season with a leg injury.
Thanks to Hockenson's availability this offseason, he was able to build chemistry with the first-year starter McCarthy and had some glowing comments about the former Wolverine.
"J.J. is a lot like Staff and a little like Kirk," Hockenson said via the Minnesota Star Tribune. "Just depends on the routes and what we're doing. 'I want you here at this time, but on the same hand I want you to get open. I'm going to trust you.'"
That's high praise from the veteran tight end, who has played with some great quarterbacks over his seven-year NFL career.
Vikings fans will be over the moon to hear comparisons to their former stat-sheet stuffing quarterback Kirk Cousins and the almost sure-to-be Hall of Famer Matthew Stafford.
If McCarthy can even emulate just a fraction of those long-time field generals, he'll be just fine in his first season seeing NFL action.