Week 1 of NFL preseason action is in the books and J.J. McCarthy is officially leading all NFL passers in most key stats that actually mean anything.
It may just be the preseason, but the former Michigan Wolverines great played incredible in his NFL debut for the Minnesota Vikings. McCarthy leads all NFL quarterbacks in yards per pass attempt, passer rating, touchdown percentage, and virtually any version of adjusted yards per pass attempt as well through Week 1. Yes he did throw one interception and took a sack, but outside of those two isolated moments there wasn't much not to like.
One of McCarthy's best plays that set him up to have one of the best starts to the 2024 season was the beauty in the post below where he found Trishton Jackson for a big gain while taking a hit. J.J.
McCarthy was dealing yesterday...
talk about staring down the barrel at QB! This might be one of my favorite throws of the weekend. Takes ALOT of courage to sit in the pocket like that. #Skol pic.
twitter.com/E2l21fKjmI McCarthy's ability to sit in the pocket and distribute accurately knowing he's about to be obliterated is not typical from a rookie in their first or even remotely early action. If he plays with this much confidence and poise he's going to find early NFL success.
But it wasn't just one play either. In the post below you can watch every single drop back from McCarthy's debut. He definitely had a couple misses early, but his pocket manipulation, quick feet, and even faster release set him up for solid play all game long.
Every dropback from J.J. McCarthy's #Vikings preseason debut today.
11 of 17, 188 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT, 18 rushing yards. pic.twitter.
com/unJUge9xIG One of the fun things that stood out was McCarthy's utilization of his mobility. While he isn't going to rack up 1000 yards at any point in his NFL career, his ability to extend plays strategically to find just enough space was often the different between a negative play and a huge gain. If his already quite quick processing and rhythm continues to improve J.
J. McCarthy is going to dominate as the starting quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings . Hopefully we get to see quite a bit more from him as the preseason progresses.
Be looking for more Michigan Wolverines and Minnesota Vikings coverage here at A to Z Sports all year long! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news! And if you want a full recap of highlights and lowlights from J.J. McCarthy's first NFL game just check out the video below! This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.
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