2 Quotes Illustrate Kevin O’Connell’s Shifting Confidence in J.J. McCarthy

What a difference a pair of years can make.

Kevin O’Connell was riding high going into 2024. Kirk Cousins had walked for a gigantic payday in Atlanta but Minnesota was set up with Sam Darnold alongside J.J. McCarthy. The Vikings were therefore working with the best of both worlds due to the upside veteran and raw but developing young fella. O’Connell was pleased.

Of course, the great issue with that plan was the upcoming injury for J.J. McCarthy. The Michigan alumnus would need to spend his rookie season in the infirmary. O’Connell, though, was quite brash and bullish in public praise, declaring the kid as the Vikings’ long-awaited franchise quarterback.

No longer, it would seem.

Kevin O’Connell Has Lost Confidence in J.J. McCarthy

Earlier in the week, Coach O’Connell sidestepped a question about whether McCarthy would remain in the QB2 spot.

“I think to me,” O’Connell began, “it’s making an assessment on what we think is best for the team.” Afterwards, O’Connell ventured into various thoughts about other roster battles and how Max Brosmer is still around. None of that chatter, though, can mask how far McCarthy has fallen over these past two years in O’Connell’s assessment. Not a declared franchise quarterback, McCarthy isn’t even a locked-in QB2.

In August of 2024, O’Connell felt so good about McCarthy that he was willing to proclaim the kid as Minnesota’s franchise quarterback to the media. Doing so came after seeing him lose his debut season to his knee injury. Still, though, O’Connell was confident.

Will Ragatz sent along the quote in a piece for Sports Illustrated: “As excited as I was to draft him, he’s confirmed everything that I hoped to see. Our fan base and everyone should be excited about the fact that we’ve got our young franchise quarterback in the building.”

Football publications covered the quote. All of the NFL’s website, Pro Football Talk, CBS Sports, and even the Vikings’ website covered that comment. Many others did, as well. And why not? It was a bold, brash claim that gained instant credibility due to who was saying it: the quarterback whisperer.

Fast forward into August of 2026 and things are quite a bit different. Already, McCarthy has been the backup for a couple of weeks. He appears to be hanging on by a thread to remain as the main backup rather than sinking down to being the QB3.

These past several weeks and months have involved Kevin O’Connell repeating himself. Over and over again, Minnesota’s skipper has insisted that the Vikings were conducting a true passer battle. Most didn’t believe what he had to say; seeing things go to Kyler Murray so early in training camp didn’t help the coach to retroactively persuade people.

Going into the Vikings’ final preseason game, many think the Carson Wentz is going to become the Vikings’ main backup. Based purely on the on-field play in the preseason, Wentz should be the QB2. The issue, though, is that he’s a 33-year-old journeyman who is well respected but not viewed as a world beater. How high is his ceiling?

At this point in time, Wentz could have more upside for 2026 alone even if the long-term edge goes to the young fella.

The thorn in the Vikings’ side: McCarthy hasn’t progressed nearly as much as desired. My theory is that the kid’s confidence is shot, meaning he reverts to old habits and struggles to scan the field.

For a long time, I argued that Kyler Murray would start in Week 1 but that J.J. McCarthy would start more games overall in 2026. That thesis was always unpopular but is now on life support.

Kevin O’Connell is entering his fifth season as the Vikings’ head coach. He’s 43-25 in the regular season since taking over, working out to a sizzling .632 winning percentage. He has won the NFC North title a single time (2022), was honored as NFL Coach of the Year (2024), and been to the playoffs twice.

He is 0-2 in the playoffs.

Senior Editor for Vikings Territory & PurplePTSD . Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.