J.J. McCarthy 'Nine' nickname, explained: Meaning, origin, more to know about Vikings QB's 'alter ego'

Daniel Mader

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J.J. McCarthy 'Nine' nickname, explained: Meaning, origin, more to know about Vikings QB's 'alter ego' image

J.J. McCarthy has had an up-and-down first full season of NFL action.

At some points, he's flashed the kind of first-round talent the Minnesota Vikings are hopeful to see consistently from their potential franchise quarterback. But at others, he's either been off the field due to injury, or struggling to manage the Vikings' offense.

McCarthy, however, recently shared that he has a kind of alter ego he created for himself on game days: "Nine." The quarterback said he loves "feeding" that game day version of himself — but he's also gotten some fan criticism for his alter ego during to his struggles in 2025.

Here's what to know about J.J. McCarthy's "Nine" nickname.

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What is J.J. McCarthy's nickname?

J.J. McCarthy's nickname is "Nine," although it was a self-created name, not given to him originally by fans.

In November, he shared that he views himself as having an alter ego during his football games — and that he had a name for it.

"I call him Nine," McCarthy said. "Nine comes out and I gotta understand, like, OK, he can't be at his peak performance throughout three-and-a-half hours. So how do I find little ways on the sideline, get back to my breath, get back to my visualization, that can kind of maintain that intense, competitive stamina throughout the whole game? It's just the pure will, determination to get the job done."

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J.J. McCarthy 'Nine' nickname, explained

McCarthy's "Nine" nickname, rather obviously, refers to the No. 9 he wears for the Vikings and he wore at Michigan, where he won a national championship. 

According to McCarthy, he first came up with the "Nine" alter ego in the year he was away from the gridiron recently, as the quarterback sat out his entire 2024 rookie season due to injury. McCarthy, however, said he loves "feeding that wolf" of his game day persona.

"To be honest with you, it really kind of started to show up this year. It came about last year during IR, just never had a full season where you want to be out there so frickin' bad, but you can't," McCarthy said, per CBS. "It was this built-up anger that was kind of ready to just explode, and I chose to harness it instead of letting it go into a self-destructive kind of way.

And it's unique and I love feeding that wolf, because my entire life, at Michigan, it was the smiley face on my hand and smile and you have fun, you're going to play better and all that, which is true, but I also think there's a lot of power that comes from that built-up anger that you can transmute into your performance."

Mostly, McCarthy is referring to the intensity he likes to bring on game day. 

"It's a gradual comedown," McCarthy said, per CBS. "My fiancee, she definitely doesn't like when Nine comes home. She does a great job keeping me levelheaded and understanding there's the football player and then there's the fiance, father part of me that I obviously gotta make priority 1a, 1b in both areas."

Later on, Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell was speaking about his quarterback, and some interpreted his comments as a subtle dig toward McCarthy's "Nine" alter ego, with the coach communicating that he'd rather McCarthy be himself at all times.

“You better have confidence, and you better have a comfort in who you are to be in certain roles. I think being the starting quarterback of an NFL team is one of those things," O’Connell said, per Vikings Territory. "All I’ve asked J.J. To do is just be authentically himself.

“I think at times, guys try to — and maybe it is the moment, and if it’s authentic in the moment, fire away, have at it — but we don’t need to exhaust any energy. Our jobs are hard enough already. Trying to be somebody else, or trying to play to some sort of persona, whatever it may be, let’s just go back to work, man. Let’s just go back to work and try to get better every single day.”

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J.J. McCarthy 'Nine' meme

Because McCarthy has struggled at various points in 2025, fans haven't been very receptive to his self-described nickname. In fact, it's become a bit of a meme surrounding the Vikings quarterback, especially when he doesn't perform well.

When he reached nine interceptions on the season, plenty of social media posts poking fun at his alter ego went around.

McCarthy has had some rough outings in his first full season as Minnesota's starter, prompting plenty of fans to make "Nine" memes.

Why does J.J. McCarthy call himself 'Nine'?

J.J. McCarthy's self-created "Nine" nickname refers to the number he wears, No. 9. He said the "Nine" alter ego originated from his time away from football due to injury, discovering a new intensity for game days and passion he taps into when on the field.

As the quarterback describes it, he taps into his "Nine" alter ego when he's trying to be his best competitive self on NFL game days.

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