It was a good day on Sunday in terms of being a Vikings fan. JJ and the team had a solid game. No complaints really. The goal now is to keep it up against Dallas which is going to be tough on the road. There is a lot of debate here about the “system” and whether or not KOC is making things easier for the boy wonder. It is quite comical to me. There simply is way more to it than even the most “sophisticated” of fans will ever know. In the end, and after reading the first link below, KOC needs to make it tougher on JJ in order for him to be even better next year.
There are not a lot of options out there next year for even backup QBs. Fans expecting the 49ers to trade Mac Jones or the Giants to trade Jameis Winslow (as if many want him anyway – I do) will likely be in for a disappointment because those teams know the QB market does not look promising (right now) next year.
We are going to need JJ to take his lumps and learn from them so that next year he will be that much better. I think the team probably brings back Wentz early on unless they are happy with Wofford. How bout JJ, Brosmer, and Wofford next year for the QB room? Exciting no?
Minnesota Vikings News and Links
Vikings offensive coordinator Wes Phillips went into detail about the system they’ve asked JJ McCarthy to master this year. Are they doing it wrong?
Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator Wes Phillips explained during his press conference why the team uses a “pure progression” system.
He said it was essentially born as an answer to coverage deception.
“In my time in the league from the beginning, everything was coverage read — it was, ‘here’s where I’m going… versus quarters, I’m going here versus two high, I’m going here versus single high,’ Phillips explained. “With the coverage becoming more complex and more versions of inverting the safety and the corner and play cover-2 or they drop the safety in the middle and drop both corners back and they’re the two deep guys. And there’s just so many different versions of coverage.”
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“The beauty of a pure progression system is that as you’re dropping back, if one is not open, all right, who took it away?” Phillips said.
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Warner tweeted on Tuesday about the “pure progression” system:
“It TRIES to combat disguising coverages… but just bc you build a play your QB can read across the field, does not mean it’s more effective & I argue the opposite!”
But then some less-legendary QBs signed off on the Vikings’ system.
“Love pure progressions,” ESPN analyst and ex-Lions, Colts etc. QB Dan Orlovsky wrote.
Ex-Saint/Brown etc. QB Luke McCown responded:
“It’s why pure progression offenses and or plays still have a place. When you can’t tell what the coverage or defense is vs these types of diabolical disguises, you must have a starting point with your eyes. Even if it’s covered,
At some point for some plays you have to be able to say I don’t care what the coverage is, because you’re not gonna figure them all out. Just get your eyes in the right spot and work it out with your eyes and feet.”
Former Patriot/Brown etc. Brian Hoyer wants QBs reading the defense. He said:
“Pure progression reads are great but teaching QBs to read coverage so they can get to an area faster as opposed to sweeping the board across the field can be the difference between a completion or a sack. This is why I think Drake Maye has made such a leap this year because Josh McDaniels didn’t try to make it easier on him by giving him simple reads but challenged him to do the hard things. He put in the work and it has paid off tremendously for him and the Patriots.”
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In an appearance with Paul Allen on Tuesday, head coach Kevin O’Connell brought up times in which McCarthy would tell coaches things that he anticipated specific defensive players doing, to which O’Connell said: “Stop. Just quiet your mind and let’s not overthink anything other than what is my job on the play.”
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But it doesn’t seem that simplification referred to the actual system, rather the amount of things used to dress up a straightforward system. Motions, formations, checks at the line of scrimmage. The sheer number of passes vs. runs. The screens and play-actions. Stuff like that.
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In making their decision to roll with McCarthy, the Vikings may have miscalculated how difficult it is to win with young QBs in 2025, even if they planned for it with the “pure progression” system.
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One of the reasons for the sea change from the pass-crazed 2018-2022 seasons is that defenses are evolving. Coverages rarely are what they look like pre-snap. Pressures are coming from every player on the field, not just the front four.
There probably isn’t a panacea system that’s going to change the fact that defenses are mostly winning the battle right now.
However, we did just see McCarthy play his best football against the Washington Commanders when things were “simplified.”
What are we supposed to make of that?
First, it gave folks hope that it may have been “the system” at fault because that’s a lot easier to accept than if it was McCarthy not being ready/able to play in the NFL. Systems are fixable, whereas quarterbacks’ shortcomings are harder to change.
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The thing that seems to have confused the Vikings’ staff and players this year is that McCarthy continually has looked good in practice. But when he got into the games, he made poor decisions that resulted in turnovers.
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Oddly enough, where he was deciding to throw the ball might not have even been the main issue. McCarthy’s “on-target” percentage per Pro-Football Reference is just 63.1% and his “bad throw” percentage is 21.8%. Last year those numbers were 77.0% and 15.0% for Sam Darnold. In 2023, Kirk Cousins hit 82.8% on target and only had 12.8% “bad.” Even Nick Mullens was on target 73.1% of the time in ‘23. Accuracy takes time to develop, too.
Vikings’ playoff odds sit under 1%, but here’s the miracle path still on the table
For starters, the Vikings have to win out and finish 9-8. Then they need a LOT of help.
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Here’s a wider view of what needs to happen:
Vikings win out to finish 9-8
Bears lose out to finish 9-8
Lions finish 9-8, with their only remaining win coming against the Bears
Cowboys lose at least two more games, including to the Vikings
South runner-up (Panthers or Bucs) finish 9-8 or worse
If the 7th seed is up for grabs between the Vikings, Lions, and Bears, the tiebreaker would be decided by the best record in head-to-head games. Minnesota would be 2-2, the Lions would be 1-3, and the Bears would be 2-2.
That would eliminate the Lions and bring the tiebreaker to the better division record between the Vikings and Bears. Hello, playoffs! The Vikings would be 4-2 in the North, while the Bears would 1-5 in divisional games.
Kevin O’Connell may have just killed J.J. McCarthy’s ‘Nine’ persona
“Nine” was amazing in Minnesota’s win over Detroit back in November, but J.J. McCarthy’s struggles in the games that followed turned his alter ego, “Nine,” into a meme and the laughing stock of the National Football League. Everybody noticed, including McCarthy’s head coach, Kevin O’Connell.
O’Connell did his weekly chat with KFAN-FM 100.3’s Paul Allen on Tuesday, and he made it pretty clear that he’s not a big fan of McCarthy’s alter ego when Allen said “the Nine bit sucks” and it’s not who McCarthy truly is.
“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. All I’ve asked J.J. to do is just be authentically himself,” O’Connell said of McCarthy’s on-field persona.
“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. When we do have moments like Sunday and we can take a step back like J.J. and I were able to do —and I told him, I was proud of him. I was proud of the way from the moment (he) showed up on Wednesday all the way through to flipping (him) that game ball afterwards — it just felt like the guy that he can be for us, and it felt like it’s repeatable.”
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O’Connell thinks the week off, coupled with a slightly dumbed-down game plan and ditching the focus on his fundamentals, allowed McCarthy to maximize his natural ability. Less thinking led to quicker decisions and fewer negative plays.
“What I’ve learned, and maybe it came from one week there for Max to play against the Seahawks when he was in the protocol, but taking a step back after having a pretty good amount of work over the last few weeks prior, ‘Man, if I just throw that completion right there. If on that second down, instead of trying to take three hitches and work the ball down the field, I check the ball down, I put the ball in play and we end up with a 2nd-and-3 or a new set of downs or a 3rd-and-manageable where it doesn’t feel like we’ve gotta move heaven and earth at the quarterback position to try to stay on the field and sustain drives. The whole game plan was about stacking positive plays,” O’Connell said.
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“There’s a lot been made of fundamentals and technique. Our job as coaches are to try to help players improve. We’ve navigated through the season of watching him show improvement in areas of fundamentals and technique. But there’s another layer to it with J.J.,” O’Connell explained.
What’s that layer? Overthinking things.
“In certain times of the season, you would get a response of, ‘I thought this player was going to do that,” speaking about a defensive player. Or, ‘Hey, I played with Mike Sainristil at Michigan, he’s real instinctive, he might try to do…“ Stop. Just quiet your mind and let’s not overthink anything other than what is my job on the play, and making good decisions, putting the ball in play,” O’Connell said.
“It’s amazing just what the calmness you’re speaking of simply comes from stacking plays of doing your job and putting the ball in play to Minnesota Vikings players in space. Whether it’s a two-yard gain or a 50-yard gain, they’re all positive, and they all have a negative effect on the defense. It allows me to continue calling the game within the sequencing of how we practice on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, on into the game.”
So, what have we learned about McCarthy?
He needs to ditch the “Nine” persona
He needs to stop thinking about fundamentals and technique
He needs to stop overanalyzing everything
He needs to take the throws when they present themselves
Or, maybe he just needs to play one of the NFL’s worst defenses like he just did against the Commanders. He’ll get another chance Sunday night against a Dallas defense that owns the league’s worst pass defense and is 31st in points allowed per game (29.7).
What should we make of J.J. McCarthy’s breakout game vs. Washington?
The numbers make it clear: J.J. McCarthy played the best game of his young NFL career in Sunday’s 31-0 win over the Commanders. His seventh start featured his first game with three passing touchdowns, his first interception-free day, and his first home victory. His completion percentage, passer rating, and EPA per play were all new personal highs as well.
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The overall takeaway from this McCarthy performance is that it was absolutely an encouraging step in the right direction, but it also shouldn’t be taken for more than what it was. It would’ve been highly concerning if McCarthy hadn’t been able to execute the plan and make the throws he made against a truly woeful Washington pass defense.
Vikings snap count analysis and notable PFF grades against Commanders
Top 5 PFF grades on offense (min. 20 snaps)
- Oliver — 92.8
- O’Neill — 92.3
- Kelly — 78.7
- McCarthy — 78.4
- Jones — 76.8
Top 5 PFF grades on defense (min. 20 snaps)
- Hargrave — 93.0
- Smith — 90.1
- Van Ginkel — 81.0
- Rodgers — 75.5
- Wilson — 73.9
Kevin O’Connell Recaps J.J. McCarthy’s Day vs. Commanders, Hidden Impacts & Andrew Van Ginkel INT
As good as he is with Xs and Os, Kevin O’Connell’s culture building is also strong.
It’s why Harrison Smith got a little choked up after his 203rd regular-season game and cited words shared by the Vikings head coach with players in a team meeting Saturday eve as the driving force of a 31-0 win.
O’Connell expressed his appreciation for Smith and his receptiveness of the coach’s motivation tactics after the dominant performance in Week 14 when he met with Twin Cities reporters Monday afternoon.
“For a guy like Harrison and the football career he’s had, to have a message like that resonate with him, that’s what you’re in this position to do, is try to — week-in-and-week-out, no matter what — find a way to reach your team,” he said earnestly. “That’s really what I strive to do in this position. And, regardless of what the previous week or weeks have been like, or what the noise may be out there, I have a very important job that I take very seriously due to those players and the love that I have for those guys.”
O’Connell, 40, and Smith, 36, aren’t just neighbors in age. O’Connell’s recommendation to players to play for the 16-year-old version of themselves hit home because he and Smith share an extreme love for the game.
On Sunday against Washington — the 50th Vikings regular-season win at U.S. Bank Stadium — Smith nabbed his 38th career interception, drawing him closer to third place in the org’s record books.
“I’ve made no secret of him being one of my all-time favorite people in the league that I’ve been able to be around — not just players,” O’Connell said. “I mean, his playing career speaks for itself. His impact on the game yesterday speaks for itself. But just any moment that I get with him, whether it’s Friday mornings in the 1-on-1 setting, or throughout the week [on the] practice field, whatever it is, I don’t take a single one for granted. … He makes me a better coach. He makes me have a unique connection to this team through a guy that’s seen and done basically everything in this league you can possibly do — winning teams, teams that have had to endure through struggle, all the different kinds of teammates, and he still finds a way to relate, at this point in his career, to even the youngest guy in the locker room.”
Smith is someone who “means the absolute world” to O’Connell – and is a unique teacher to the coach.
“He’s got such a unique perspective that sometimes, as you wade through the waters of a season – it might be something that I’m thinking about, but maybe not necessarily connecting the dots the way he can, from his perspective as a player and a captain and a guy that has led, in his way, you know?” O’Connell shared. “We all can probably agree that he’s authentically Harry, and that’s a really good thing for all of us to be around. And I know, selfishly, for me, I’m trying to soak up every moment of that I can.”
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- Jefferson’s big impact
WR Justin Jefferson was an important piece of Sunday’s shutout, encouraging teammates and leading by example.
After one play, the phenom was spotted clapping his hands and pointing at McCarthy as if to say good job when the QB progressed from Jefferson, who was his first read, to Jordan Addison for a completion.
O’Connell said the receiver’s approval was another illustration of his positive influence on the offense.
“I’ve tried to say this as many times as I possibly can, he has been elite from a leadership standpoint, character standpoint, being one of our captains and guys that drives this organization,” he emphasized. “That’s no matter what the look on his face has been, that’s no matter what the statistical columns say.
“I can’t say enough about him,” the coach added. “That’s been kind of a very unique topic, and it’s been a unique year for him when you consider what the previous [five] have been like. But I was not surprised, and I had the same reaction on the play, so I guess that makes him a coach on the field in a lot of ways.”
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- Tip of the cap to o-line performance
“We were consistently getting some knock-back into the defensive front and getting the run started,” O’Connell said. “I thought our backs were really decisive. Both Aaron [Jones, Sr.] and J.P. (Jordan Mason) ran really hard; they had great vision; they found the space. And our receivers continue to do a phenomenal job against teams where in many ways, historically, if we’re seeing safeties activating in the front the way they started to, we might go to a different area on the call sheet — but we kept on being consistent with being efficient in the run game, which was everything to us.”
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“You can feel the communication of Ryan Kelly was phenomenal. Brian O’Neill was phenomenal again,” O’Connell said. “C.D. in there for, up until we pulled him out at the end with some of the other guys, you felt him from a physicality standpoint. And then for Donnie, for having worked through an injury that might hold guys out for a couple weeks … did everything he possibly could and then played well in the game to go along with Will.”
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- Gink’ ‘The Unicorn’
During Sunday’s postgame media availability, Jonathan Allen referred to Andrew Van Ginkel as a “unicorn” because of his unique skill set.
Allen noted not only “Gink’s” athleticism but also his ability to process plays as they unfold. Asked about the comments, O’Connell concurred and elaborated.
“It’s not only the post-snap of what he sees and reacts to — it’s the pre-snap understanding. He knows our call. He knows his job in the call. He knows what might be the response to what we are bringing in … where he’s aligned, offensive formation, what types of plays he can get,” O’Connell said. “He’s processing all that information in real time.
“That then allows the ball to be kind of ‘moving slower’ for him when he’s been able to make a play on those types of throws multiple times since he’s been here, and he’s been really close on a bunch of other ones.”
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“There’s random second downs where he just makes a super instinctive tackle or ends up saving a gain to keep it to 3 or 4 yards,” O’Connell said. “He does so many things that you have to really take the time to appreciate him.”
Vikings, J.J. McCarthy Get Strong Words from Legendary QB
The contest saw the young signal caller achieve multiple season (and by default, career) highs across many metrics:
Completion percentage: 69.3%
Passing touchdowns: 3
Passer rating: 129.2
QBR: 75.2
PFF offensive grade: 78.4
PFF passing grade: 73.1
PFF rushing grade: 74.5
“Hard to believe that that’s a 5 and 8 football team right now just based on what we just witnessed. Honestly, I think just reestablishing their identity on offense and getting JJ McCarthy some confidence. Obviously [he’s] been banged up a lot, but he came out here and was ultra efficient.
They ran the ball extremely well. They incorporated everybody. And honestly, if the defense is going to play like that, you know, force turnovers, wreak havoc on the opposing offense, create a ton of short fields for you…this team is going to be Really tough here down the stretch and they’re gonna play some teams like a Dallas, like a Detroit…
So maybe even if Minnesota is out of it in terms of the playoff race, they have a chance to play some spoiler and get some key reps down the stretch.”
Legendary QB Drew Brees on the Minnesota Vikings post-game on FOX
Steelers’ Adam Thielen says he got his love for football back on Sunday
“It was crazy,” Thielen said. “It’s been a wild week. I found my love for the game back, just being out there playing the game I love … just thankful to be out there and thrown into a huge game and rivalry.”
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