Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy was smiling, eventually, after Sunday’s win over the Lions. During the game (and during coach Kevin O’Connell’s post-game speech), he was not smiling much.
McCarthy flashed a hard edge. A mean mug, if you will. He explained his facial expression to reporters on Wednesday.
Via Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com, McCarthy says it’s his alter ego. He refers to it as “Nine,” after the number on his jersey.
“It really kind of started to show up this year, and it came about last year during IR,” McCarthy said. “Just never had a full season, where you want to be out there so freaking bad, but you can’t. It was just 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.”
The “Nine” persona is a break from McCarthy’s past approach.
“I kind of love feeding that wolf, because my entire life at [the University of Michigan], there was a smiley face on my hand, and [if] you smile, and you have fun, you’re going to play better and all that -- which is true,” McCarthy said. “But I also think there’s a lot of power that comes from that built-up anger that you can transmute into your performance.”
Whatever it is, wherever it comes from, it worked. The Vikings may be 4-4. They may be sitting at the bottom of one of the best divisions in football. But they’re 2- in the NFC North, with the arrow currently pointing up. And “Nine” will be ready on Sunday to load it into his bow and shoot again — at an opponent who has won two games in a row and is feeling very confident as it ventures into Minnesota for the second home start of McCarthy’s career.
Last month, a questionable block from Chiefs receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster prompted Lions safety Brian Branch to spark a post-game brawl. Last Sunday, a questionable block from Lions receiver Kalif Raymond on Vikings linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel has sparked a delay reaction, verbally.
Via Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com, multiple Vikings players complained on Wednesday about Raymond’s tactics.
On the play in question, Raymond — who was in motion at the snap — caught Van Ginkel with a block he didn’t see coming, as Van Ginkel rushed quarterback Jared Goff.
Per Seifert, Van Ginkel called it “a dirty play.” Linebacker Eric Wilson said it was “absolute bullshit” and a “cheap shot.”
“Obviously, getting hit on the side, I’m just going to pass rush,” Van Ginkel said. “And all of a sudden I get whiplash because the guy blindsides me. I’m not going to go into too much detail about it, but I wasn’t too pleased with it.”
As Seifert notes, the technique wasn’t flagged, and it doesn’t appear to constitute an illegal blindside block.
“I think that it’s something that the league should look at if it’s something that they need to take out of the game,” Van Ginkel said. “Because we can’t be doing that. . . . When you’re pass rushing like that, you are not anticipating someone blindsiding from the side. I’m trying to get off the ball, get a good pass rush. I had no clue he was there. How are we supposed to protect ourselves in those cases?”
Van Ginkel recovered from the block to stop running back Jahmyr Gibbs for a one-yard loss.
The Vikings had the ultimate last laugh on the day, with a 27-24 win. They’ll meet again on December 25. And Van Ginkel may already know what he’ll be getting Raymond for Christmas.
Vikings running back Aaron Jones expressed confidence that he’d be able to play against the Ravens after injuring his shoulder in Week 9, but his outlook for this Sunday is far from certain.
Jones, who is also listed with a toe injury, did not take part in Wednesday’s practice. The team will work out twice more before handing in injury designations for their matchup with the AFC North club.
Safety Theo Jackson (concussion), cornerback Jeff Okudah (concussion), tight end Josh Oliver (foot), and safety Harrison Smith (rest) were also out of practice for the Vikings.
Right guard Will Fries (calf), fullback C.J. Ham (hand), safety Josh Metellus (foot), and defensive lineman Jalen Redmond (shin) were limited participants. Left tackle Christian Darrisaw (knee) was the only player on the injury report as a full participant.
Free agent cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. will be busy for the next week.
Since being cleared to return from spinal fusion surgery, Samuel has already scheduled visits with six NFL teams.
Samuel is visiting the Panthers today, Packers on Thursday, Vikings on Friday, 49ers on Monday, Bears on Tuesday and Steelers on Wednesday, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.
The 26-year-old Samuel was a 2021 second-round pick of the Chargers who had a very promising rookie season but did not live up to expectations after that. Samuel was a starter in all four seasons with the Chargers, but last year he played in only four games. Now some team will hope he can step in and make an immediate impact.
The Vikings outlasted the Lions for a 27-24 win last Sunday and one of the biggest plays of the game came on special teams in the fourth quarter.
Vikings defensive lineman Levi Drake Rodriguez blocked a Jake Bates field goal attempt with 6:20 to play in the game. The Vikings kicked a field goal to go up 10 points after that play, which loomed even larger after the Lions drove for a late touchdown.
Rodriguez was named the NFC special teams player of the week on Wednesday.
Rodriguez also had two tackles, a sack and two quarterback hits on the way to the win, so his contributions extended beyond the blocked kick that helped seal a win for his team.
