Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy is returning today, and he should have both his offensive tackles protecting him.
Although Vikings left tackle Christian Darrisaw and right tackle Brian O’Neill are both listed as questionable with knee injuries, both are expected to play, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.
McCarthy has been out since Week Two with an ankle injury, and when he was playing he was getting sacked far too much, taking nine sacks while throwing just 41 passes. That’s a problem with McCarthy’s ability to see the pass rush, but it’s a problem that will be easier to solve with a healthy offensive line in front of him.
The 3-4 Vikings are 8.5-point underdogs at 5-2 Detroit today.
On Wednesday, the Vikings added veteran quarterback John Wolford to the practice squad. On Saturday, the Vikings did not sign him to the active roster.
It means the Vikings will have only two quarterbacks available at Detroit — second-year first-rounder J.J. McCarthy and undrafted rookie Max Brosmer.
Wolford, if signed to the active roster, could have been the emergency quarterback. By rule, he could have entered the game only if the other two were injured or ejected.
Now, the Vikings will have to use a position player at quarterback if that happens.
Some would say that, if an NFL team gets down to its third quarterback in any game, the cause is already lost. Still, the Vikings chose not to take advantage of the device the NFL reintroduced after the 2022 NFC Championship, when the 49ers lost Brock Purdy early and Josh Johnson was later injured and eventually running back Christian McCaffrey was taking snaps.
In April 2024, six quarterbacks were selected among the first 12 picks in the draft. For the first time, all of them will be playing on the same day.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, the No. 1 overall pick, will start at Cincinnati. Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels, the second overall pick, will start at home against the Seahawks.
The third overall pick, Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, will host the Falcons and eighth overall pick Michael Penix Jr. The Vikings and No. 10 choice J.J. McCarthy visit the Lions, and the Broncos and quarterback Bo Nix, taken at No. 12, will visit the Texans.
All six started in Week 1 and Week 2, but they didn’t play on the same day.
It remains to be seen which of the six will become franchise quarterbacks, which will become consistent starters, and which will not pan out. Maye is currently playing the best of the bunch. Daniels has had the most success with his team. Penix has been up and down.
McCarthy is the only one who continues to be a largely unknown commodity. He missed all of the 2024 regular season, and he played in only the first two games of the 2025 season.
J.J. McCarthy has no injury designation for Sunday’s game against the Lions.
He returns to the starting lineup for the first time since Week 2 and will make his third career start.
McCarthy (ankle) was limited in all three practices this week.
The Vikings ruled out tight end Josh Oliver (foot), fullback C.J. Ham (hand), and cornerback Jeff Okudah (concussion). Dwight McGlothern will take Okudah’s snaps, and Ben Yurosek and Ben Sims could see more snaps in place of Oliver.
Minnesota lists outside linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel (neck), left tackle Christian Darrisaw (knee), right tackle Brian O’Neill (knee) and safety Josh Metellus (foot) as questionable.
Van Ginkel should return, coach Kevin O’Connell said, after the veteran player missed the past four games.
Justin Skule is the swing tackle, and Walter Rouse is the other backup tackle.
Cornerback Terrion Arnold will be back in the Lions’ secondary for Sunday’s NFC North showdown with the Vikings.
Arnold missed the team’s last two games with a shoulder injury, but he was a full participant in practice all of this week and he does not have an injury designation for the game.
Arnold’s return is good news for a secondary that’s been bedeviled by injuries. In addition to the players that have landed on injured reserve, they’ll be without safety Kerby Joseph (knee) this weekend while cornerback Avonte Maddox (hamstring) and safety Daniel Thomas (forearm) are listed as questionable.
Left tackle Taylor Decker (shoulder) is also listed as questionable, but head coach Dan Campbell said on Friday that he thinks Decker will be good to go on Sunday.
Running back Sione Vaki (groin) rounds out the questionable group and the Lions ruled out linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez (knee) and running back Craig Reynolds (hamstring).
