McCarthy needs to play ‘lights out’ to start over Darnold

Even though he was a first-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings, J.J. McCarthy still might not be the NFC North team’s starting quarterback this fall.

McCarthy just signed his rookie deal with the Vikings during the week. But the Michigan product has been behind veteran Sam Darnold in practices.

Appearing on ESPN’s “SportsCenter” on Saturday, Jeremy Fowler said that McCarthy would have to play “lights out” to beat out Darnold for the starting job.

“The Vikings are really excited about Sam Darnold,” Fowler said. “They believe there’s untapped potential here.”

Fowler says the Vikings feel they will give Darnold the best supporting cast he’s ever had in the NFL. They are hoping that the former No. 3 overall pick will be able to have a resurgence similar to what Geno Smith experienced in Seattle.

We shared a few reports in June saying that McCarthy would likely be behind Darnold on the depth chart in Week 1. Nothing seems to have changed in that regard.

The 27-year-old Darnold is now with his fourth team since 2020. He spent last season in San Francisco as a backup to Brock Purdy and will now seemingly have a chance to lead the Vikings in 2024.