The Minnesota Vikings quarterback suffered an ankle sprain during his team’s ‘Sunday Night Football’ loss to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2, according to head coach Kevin O’Connell.
O’Connell also shared that the Vikings are already preparing to face the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday without McCarthy under center.
It’s the second lower-body injury of McCarthy’s pro career. His first, a torn meniscus in his preseason debut last year, knocked out last year’s No. 10 overall pick for the entirety of his rookie season.
Through two career regular-season games, McCarthy is 24-of-41 passing (58.5% completion rate) for 301 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions, currently tied with six other players for the league lead.
McCarthy has a 1-1 record in his two starts after orchestrating a fourth-quarter comeback in his regular season debut against the Chicago Bears, then dropping his second game to the Falcons Sunday night.
J.J. McCarthy injury update
McCarthy sprained his ankle in the Vikings’ Week 2 loss to the Falcons on ‘Sunday Night Football,’ according to their head coach.
O’Connell added that he doesn’t see the injury as a short-term IR situation, but second-year quarterback is expected to miss his third career start against the Bengals next Sunday.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter adds that the injury could shelve McCarthy for 2 to 4 weeks.
Who is the Vikings’ backup quarterback?
Carson Wentz, who played the 2024 season with the Kansas City Chiefs, is McCarthy’s backup in Minnesota.
The Vikings signed Wentz to a one-year deal after trading Sam Howell to the Philadelphia Eagles at the end of training camp.
If Wentz starts for the Vikings in Week 3 as expected, it would be his first start of consequence – i.e. outside of two Week 18, ‘rest-the-starters’ games each of the last two years – since 2022, when he was with the Washington Commanders.
That game, a 24-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns, infamously opened the door for the Commanders’ elimination from playoff contention, which became official with a Green Bay Packers win later that day.
A post-game press conference question about then-head coach Ron Rivera’s decision to bench previous starter Taylor Heinicke in favor of Wentz given the pending elimination led Rivera to ask reporters, ‘We can be eliminated?’
Vikings QB depth chart
Minnesota has two backups for McCarthy on its active roster.
J.J. McCarthy (doubtful – ankle)
Carson Wentz
Max Brosmer
Brosmer was an undrafted free agent pickup by the Vikings in April. The University of Minnesota product won the third-string job over Brett Rypien (and Howell, whom the Vikings traded to Philadelphia) with strong performances in training camp and the preseason.