The Minnesota Vikings‘ decision to leapfrog the rest of the NFL to draft J.J. McCarthy over Bo Nix is looking bleak.
Nix led the Denver Broncos to a 33-30 overtime victory over the Buffalo Bills on Saturday, January 17, completing 26 of 46 pass attempts for 279 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
Not only did Nix lead his team to a conference championship berth, but he also became the fourth quarterback in the 2024 draft class to earn a playoff win, joining Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye.
An hour after the Broncos advanced, Sam Darnold and the Seattle Seahawks jumped out to a 17-point lead over the San Francisco 49ers in the first half of the NFC divisional round.
Vikings fans took to social media after Saturday’s results to express their outrage with the pressing quarterback situation, as the Vikings’ bet on McCarthy has not paid dividends after two seasons.
Vikings Fans Vent Frustration After Team Took JJ McCarthy Over Bo Nix
GettyDenver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix.
Sitting with the 11th pick in the 2024 draft, the Vikings felt the urgency to trade up just one spot after the Atlanta Falcons surprised the NFL with the selection of Michael Penix Jr. with the No. 8 pick.
Minnesota gave a fourth-round pick to the New York Jets to swap first-round picks with the threat that another team could jump the order for a quarterback.
Several fans vented on social media after Nix, the final quarterback taken in the first round that year, won his first playoff game.
“The Vikings could have drafted Bo Nix,” a second fan said. “Instead they traded up for ‘Nine.’ ”
“Welp going from watching Bo Nix (Vikes passed on him) to watching Sam Darnold (Vikes dumped him), I have a clearer sense why Vikes never win anything,” one fan wrote.
“Quick reminder the Vikings drafted JJ McCarthy over Bo Nix (51 total TD, 3 INT at Oregon in 2023) because “McCarthy fit O’Connell’s Pro-Style System” better,” a third fan posted.
To make matters worse, Nix, who was deemed a game manager during pre-draft evaluation has evolved into one of the NFL’s best deep-ball passers.
“Since the start of the 2024 season (including the postseason), no quarterback has thrown more deep touchdown passes of 20+ air yards than Bo Nix (19),” NFL Next Gen Stats posted during the game.
To add insult to injury, Nix is proving Sean Payton right with his viral post-draft comment that he baited the Vikings into trading up for McCarthy.
Seahawks, Sam Darnold’s Success Only Makes Matters Worse for Vikings
GettyThe Seattle Seahawks are heading into their first playoff game of the 2025-26 season against the 49ers, and they’ve received good news.
Fans also took issue with the decision to move on from Darnold after he won 14 games in Minnesota a year ago.
“Sam Darnold just needed to sacrifice the Vikings fans hearts to become a franchise QB. Cool,” one fan wrote.
“Vikings fans have to be beside themselves watching Sam Darnold rn,” a second fan said.
The Vikings are firmly entrenched in their investment with McCarthy, and the longer they hold onto hope that McCarthy, who is still just 22 years old, develops into a franchise quarterback, the longer they squander the prime of a ready-to-win roster.
What the organization decides to do at quarterback this upcoming season remains to be seen, but fan sentiment will surely light a fire under many decision-makers’ seats this offseason.
Vikings Facing Backlash as QB Decision Sours