Rap: McCarthy-Kyler battle to go entirety of camp

KOC didn’t mince words, saying, “This gives us the best chance to win this Sunday.” O’Connell did note that the backup quarterback decisions will be made on a week-to-week basis. Still, this serves as another indictment of J.J. McCarthy, who will presumably be inactive for Week 1. The former first-round pick is unlikely to play at all this year and will likely be looking for a new team after the season ends.

Teasley did not say whether McCarthy will be the backup or third-string quarterback. McCarthy is practicing in full after missing time with an ankle injury late in camp. His spotty play during training camp and the preseason, plus the missed time due to injury, all but guarantee Carson Wentz will be the team’s backup to open the year. As the QB3, McCarthy will likely be a healthy scratch, only able to enter the game if both quarterbacks ahead of him go down with injuries. The fact that he is expected to be on the Week 1 roster only means Teasley was unable to find someone willing to trade even a late-round pick for McCarthy.

The Athletic’s Alec Lewis made a Saturday stir when he left McCarthy off his Vikings 53-man roster prediction, but that would have been hasty even if the Vikes are convinced “Nine” has no future with the organization. This keeps open the possibility of some sort of pick swap trade, or perhaps even “development” behind Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz. We doubt coach Kevin O’Connell is holding his breath on that one. A manifest bust through his first two years in the league, McCarthy could also end up waived later this week after the Vikes make a few waiver claims. Even if his time in Minnesota has yet to come to an end, the clock is still ticking.

McCarthy left preseason Week 2 with an ankle injury and returned to practice before ultimately missing preseason Week 3 altogether. According to Lewis, that only added to the murkiness about McCarthy’s 2026 status. All signs point to Carson Wentz as the QB2 after he started Friday’s game against the Broncos. Lewis adds that “McCarthy’s comfort (or lack thereof) with being QB3 could dictate his future in Minnesota” and projects that the Vikings won’t carry him on the 53-man roster to begin the regular season. The 10th overall pick in the draft only two years ago, McCarthy’s path to being a reclamation project for another organization could arrive sooner than anyone thought. Stay tuned.

Wentz started this game and was on the field for two drives, both of which resulted in punts. J.J. McCarthy missed this game with an ankle issue and was already fighting for the backup job. The missed practice time and recurring injury issues likely have him behind Wentz on the depth chart when Week 1 comes around. The hope for Vikings fans is that Murray is a capable distributor of the football and neither Wentz nor McCarthy sees the field this year.

The Vikings hoped that McCarthy’s ankle injury would heal, but ultimately the 23-year-old quarterback isn’t ready to play. The injury is considered minor and McCarthy is day-to-day, according to Lewis. While minor, McCarthy’s injury has cost him valuable reps as he now finds himself battling Carson Wentz for the QB2 job.

McCarthy has been limited in practice this week as he deals with a mild deltoid sprain in his ankle. Despite the injury, the Vikings want to maximize the 23-year-old’s preseason reps with Kyler Murray already locked in as the starter. It’s also possible McCarthy competes with Carson Wentz for the No. 2 quarterback spot as both players split second-team reps earlier this week. O’Connell said the team is aiming to have McCarthy ready to start against the Broncos Friday, but also added, “if we can’t get him there, we can’t get him there.” Ultimately, the ankle injury seems minor but may prevent McCarthy from seeing valuable reps as he fights to stay as the QB2 on the Vikings depth chart.

The Vikings spent a lot of energy having a pretend quarterback competition between McCarthy and Kyler Murray this offseason, but at least it kept them fresh for this second pretend competition where McCarthy will push Wentz for second-team duties. McCarthy is an obvious trade candidate and it would be surprising if he was higher than the third-team quarterback to open the season in Minnesota. One of these quarterbacks is more reliable than the other and somehow that quarterback is Carson Wentz.

McCarthy appeared on four for series, playing on 18 snaps while going 5-for-10 passing for 81 yards. According to KOC, he would have preferred to play McCarthy longer, but the third-year QB “was a little hobbled,” which led to the decision to pull him. O’Connell said he expects McCarthy to be fine and will look to provide an update soon, but given some of the hits he took from the Ravens on Saturday, this news doesn’t come as much of a surprise. McCarthy will get one more look this preseason in next week’s game against the Broncos if he’s able to go.

McCarthy’s most impressive play came on a 50-yard strike downfield to Tai Felton. McCarthy threw a good ball to Felton, who went up to make the contested catch and put the Vikings in scoring position, but the drive would stall a few plays later, down inside the Ravens’ five-yard line. McCarthy would sail a throw high to Felton in the end zone on second and goal, and he missed Myles Price in the flat for a would-be touchdown on fourth and goal. McCarthy also faced considerable pressure from the Ravens defense and took one sack on the day. He was pulled after one quarter of play and will presumably draw the start in next week’s preseason finale against the Broncos next Friday.