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.
