J.J. McCarthy Predicted to Help Vikings Sweep NFL Awards

The Minnesota Vikings want to be patient with rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy, but one analyst argued that McCarthy’s winning mentality is undeniable — and that will lead to a Vikings sweep of the NFL’s rookie awards.

Fox Sports’ Joe Klatt released his draft takeaways and predicted McCarthy will start Week 1, acknowledging McCarthy’s tools and intangibles that made him the No. 10 overall pick.

“Of course, the debate becomes whether McCarthy should and could start right away. I believe that he can and will start for Kevin O’Connell,” Klatt wrote. “McCarthy is hyper-competitive and really skilled. The Vikings are going to see a guy who can win them football games right away, partly because of what he does on the field, but also because he’s such a strong leader. He went 27-1 as Michigan‘s starting quarterback, making plays in key moments where prior Michigan teams failed.”

Klatt added that he believes McCarthy is a frontrunner for Offensive Rookie of the Year due to inheriting an offense loaded with talent. McCarthy and rookie edge rusher Dallas Turner, No. 17 overall, are poised to sweep the rookie awards, according to Klatt.

“McCarthy is in a situation to really succeed early on, kind of similar to C.J. Stroud. In fact, players on the same team won the Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year in the last two years. The Texans were one of them with Stroud and Will Anderson, who they traded up to No. 3 to draft,” Klatt wrote.

“There’s a chance we see that in Minnesota, too. If McCarthy plays early enough to put up the requisite numbers, we could see the Vikings sweep the Rookie of the Year awards. That’s how good of a situation McCarthy is in.”

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J.J. McCarthy, Dallas Turner’s Odds to Win Rookie of the Year With Vikings

While McCarthy’s chances at winning Offensive Rookie of the Year are nil until he claims the starting job, Vegas is bullish on the Michigan product.

He has the fourth-best odds (+1400) to win the award behind Caleb Williams (+170), Jayden Daniels (+600) and Marvin Harrison Jr. (+700), per FanDuel Sportsbook.

McCarthy has better odds than No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye (+2000) and Bo Nix (+2000) who have clearer paths to becoming Day 1 starters in their situations.

Meanwhile, Turner is the favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year with +430 odds. Selected two picks ahead of Turner, Los Angeles Chargers edge rusher Laiatu Laitu has the second-best odds (+500) at the award.

While the Vikings have a rich tradition of skilled offensive rookies, boasting five Offensive Rookie of the Year winners, they have never rostered a Defensive Rookie of the Year winner.

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Vikings Predicted to Start McCarthy After 1st Month of the Season

While there is an eagerness to deploy McCarthy and begin his development, the Vikings have a detailed plan in place for him.

“The Vikings will follow an individualized development plan they created for each of the quarterbacks they considered drafting, one that requires McCarthy to hit specific benchmarks and gives coach Kevin O’Connell full authority to make the timing decision,” ESPN’s Kevin Seifert wrote. “The approach is designed to avoid the worst-case scenario — ruining McCarthy’s career by exposing him before he is ready — and is a big reason the Vikings spent $10 million in March to sign veteran Sam Darnold as a bridge starter.”

While Star Tribune beat reporter Ben Goessling gave McCarthy only a 10% chance of starting Week 1, his colleague Michael Rand predicted Week 5 to be when the Vikings unleash McCarthy so long as McCarthy lives up to his maturity and mastery of the game.

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