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The Minnesota Vikings’ decision to commit to quarterback J.J. McCarthy was highly debated at the time. Now, it’s looking like a big mistake.
They let both Daniel Jones and Sam Darnold walk away in free agency and steered clear of any potential veteran backup to make sure their No. 10 pick had a clear path to start.
But after watching him struggle to stay healthy and looking overwhelmed when he’s actually been on the field, it’s starting to feel like a lost season for Kevin O’Connell’s team.
Considering that, Establish the Run’s Anthony Amico dug deep into the stats to figure out just how bad things have been with McCarthy at the helm, and it looks like he’s entering some pretty infamous territory.
This J.J. McCarthy stat is historically bad
“J.J. McCarthy now ranks 851 out of 852 in EPA per Dropback among qualified passers since 2000, per Tru Media. The only player below McCarthy is JaMarcus Russell,” Amico wrote on X.
For those unfamiliar with this stat, it measures a quarterback’s efficiency by calculating the Expected Points Added (EPA) with every pass. That also includes sacks and scrambles, and it compares the number to the average expected points for that situation.
JaMarcus Russell is widely considered one of the biggest busts in NFL history. While plenty of his shortcomings were attributed to his questionable work ethic, which isn’t the case with McCarthy, this speaks volumes about how bad things have been in the Twin Cities.
McCarthy’s 52.6 PFF grade ranks 38th among 41 eligible quarterbacks this season, and he also ranks 36th in passing yards (929), 34th in passing touchdowns (six), and has the fifth-most interceptions (10) despite playing the seventh-fewest snaps (209) this season.Â
The Vikings looked a couple of pieces away from Super Bowl contention, and they will now have to make a decision about their franchise quarterback.
