Signs have pointed to quarterback J.J. McCarthy returning to the starting lineup all week and it became official on Friday.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell said on Friday that McCarthy will get the start against the Packers on Sunday. McCarthy missed Week 17 with a hairline fracture in his right hand.
Sunday’s game will be McCarthy’s 10th start of the season. He also missed time with an ankle injury and a concussion.
The Vikings ruled out tight end Gavin Bartholomew (back), tight end T.J. Hockenson (shoulder), running back Aaron Jones (hip), and wide receiver Myles Price (ankle). Cornerback Dwight McGlothern (hip) is listed as questionable.
Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy returned to full practice participation on Thursday, which suggests he’ll be back in the lineup for Sunday’s game against the Packers.
That will provide McCarthy with one more chance to make an impression at the end of his uneven first season as the starter in Minnesota. His current hand injury, an earlier ankle injury and a concussion have kept him out for almost half the season and his on-field results were often underwhelming.
Wide receiver Justin Jefferson’s numbers reflect the nature of those on-field results. He’s posted the lowest receptions and yards per game of his career and remains 53 yards shy of hitting 1,000 receiving yards for the sixth time in his first six seasons. On Thursday, though, Jefferson said his vote would be for McCarthy to remain the quarterback in 2026.
“That’s not my job,” Jefferson said, via Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com. “Of course I would love for him to be here. Of course I would love for him to be the quarterback. Especially off this year. I feel like he needs to show everybody and prove to everybody that he is that top-tier quarterback. So I would love to have him. I would love to work with him and show everybody that he is that No. 1 guy.”
Week 18’s performance won’t do much to change the big picture of the Vikings’ season, but a positive outing would be a good argument for McCarthy’s place in the future of the franchise.
The Packers could deploy recently-acquired cornerback Trevon Diggs as soon as Sunday, at Minnesota. Diggs has a high level of confidence in his ability to make a difference for the NFC’s No. 7 seed.
“I still feel like I’m the best,” Diggs said Thursday, via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com.
Diggs plans to be the same player he has always been.
“I think I just need to be myself, you know?” Diggs said. “Be who I know I am. Go out there and perform, and performing everything will take care of itself. I’m not chasing accolades. I’m not chasing anything. I’m chasing, you know, being a better me, being better every day . . . helping this team win.”
Regardless of whether Diggs plays on Sunday, the Packers will need him when the playoffs start next weekend.
“It feels good, you know?” Diggs said. “I want to be comfortable with being uncomfortable being somewhere that I’ve never been before. Just starting over, starting fresh, a clean slate, and just working, and keeping my head down, and just working.”
Diggs has been reunited with former Cowboys teammate Micah Parsons.
“He told me, you know, it’s work,” Diggs said. “It’s a lot different. He said I’m going to like it a lot and I’m going to enjoy it. So far, I’ve been enjoying it a lot. My first day was out there today, and I had a lot of fun. And it’s a great, great thing to be here.”
The Packers get both the short-term benefit from having Diggs in the postseason, and the long-term value of inheriting a contract that extends through 2028, with no guarantees. It gives them the ability to evaluate Diggs for now, and to make a longer-term decision about his status on the team later.
Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (right hand) returned to full participation in Thursday’s practice, putting him on track to play in Sunday’s game against the Packers. He was limited on Wednesday in his first practice since injuring his throwing hand in the Dec. 21 win over the Giants.
McCarthy has a hairline fracture that forced him to miss the Christmas Day victory over the Lions. Max Brosmer started for McCarthy for a second time this season.
In nine games this season, McCarthy has completed 57.3 percent of his passes for 1,450 yards with 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
The Vikings also saw linebacker Blake Cashman (elbow), running back Jordan Mason (ankle) and defensive lineman Levi Drake Rodriguez (rib) return to full participation after limited work on Wednesday.
Safety Harrison Smith took a rest day on Thursday.
Tight end T.J. Hockenson (shoulder), running back Aaron Jones (hip) and wide receiver Myles Price (ankle) remained out of practice a second consecutive day.
Offensive tackle Brian O’Neill (heel) again was limited.
Cornerback Trevon Diggs practiced with the Packers for the first time on Thursday and he could make his first game appearance for the team this weekend.
The Packers claimed Diggs off of waivers from the Cowboys on Wednesday and head coach Matt LaFleur said at a pre-practice press conference that Diggs could “potentially” be in the lineup against the Vikings on Sunday.
“All hands on deck,” LaFleur said, via the team’s website. “You spend a lot of time with him in terms of trying to get him up so they understand what their responsibility is. So we’ll spend a lot of time with him. I do think that’s a position where you can get acclimated pretty quickly and adjust pretty quickly. Hopefully we can get that done.”
If Diggs does not play against Minnesota, he could make his Packers debut in the wild card round of the playoffs. The Packers will be the No. 7 seed in the NFC whether they win or lose this week.
