The Vikings are finally gearing up for the J.J. McCarthy era in Minnesota after what should have been his rookie season ended before it started due to a knee injury suffered in the preseason.
The Vikings’ starting quarterback from last season, Sam Darnold, had a resurgent season but signed with the Seattle Seahawks in free agency. Since Darnold’s departure, Minnesota has expressed confidence in McCarthy’s ability to be the right guy to lead the franchise moving forward.
It’s a sentiment that Vikings owner and President Mark Wilf is sticking by.
“He has a gravitational pull as a leader. He really does,” Wilf said of McCarththy, according to the Vikings’ official website. “I “The talent is there. Coach [Kevin] O’Connell is glowing in his praises of how he’s handled everything, and from an off-the-field perspective, we couldn’t be happier.
“So all things are pointing the right direction, and we’re going to be supporting J.J. to have him be the success we want him to be.”
Wilf was bullish on the job that the franchise has done over the offseason.
“We love what Kwesi [Adofo-Mensah], Coach [Kevin] O’Connell, Rob Brzezinski, the whole team, what we put together in terms of free agency to allow us to go with the draft in a way where we went for best available,” he said.
“Especially on the lines. I think getting help on the o- and d-line really freed up Kwesi to do his thing in the draft, so really successful, some really proven veterans, and I know they’re excited to get to work in Phase 3. The final OTA stage starts next week, so we’re excited to get to training camp soon enough.”
