Vikings have distinctive timeline for beginning McCarthy over Darnold

Whereas it seems that Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell will permit rookie J.J. McCarthy to compete with veteran Sam Darnold for the beginning quarterback job this summer time, O’Connell sounds prepared to sit down McCarthy by the autumn.

For a bit printed on Friday, Kevin Seifert of ESPN revealed that O’Connell has “publicly and privately” stated that McCarthy’s timetable to begin is “open-ended” forward of the preseason.

“I need to be very clear that the expectation is for this participant to not be excellent,” O’Connell stated about McCarthy. “He will have rising pains, he’ll be taught on the fly. I am not attempting to take away that side of it, both, however (deciding when he’ll play) shouldn’t be one thing you possibly can write up on a board. It is a feeling.”

The Vikings signed Darnold to be a bridge choice on the place in March earlier than they knew, for certain, they’d be capable of transfer up a spot on this 12 months’s draft order to get McCarthy on the evening of April 25. In-the-know people resembling NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports activities Illustrated and Alec Lewis of The Athletic have repeatedly stated for the reason that spring that Minnesota followers ought to anticipate Darnold to get the nod for Minnesota’s Week 1 sport on the New York Giants on Sept. 8.

Particularly, Breer felt in the midst of June that there was a “lower than 10%” likelihood McCarthy may win the job in August.

“It is simply extra about what’s in the very best curiosity of the group,” O’Connell added about his quarterback resolution. “These circumstances can not have an effect on what J.J.’s improvement plan is or some other participant on the group for that matter. It simply cannot be one thing that selfishly ever impacts that call. That basically will not change as a result of, and I do not know if it is the previous quarterback in me or not, however I do really feel an obligation to have the very best pursuits of not solely J.J. however our complete group, at coronary heart, once we make that call.”

On paper, the Vikings may use their Week 6 bye to arrange McCarthy to make his first regular-season begin for the Week 7 dwelling matchup versus the division-rival Detroit Lions on Oct. 20. O’Connell desires it identified he is not but occupied with such a state of affairs enjoying out, and it actually appears as if the Minnesota teaching workers desires Darnold to guide the group to quite a few victories in order that McCarthy can proceed to develop as a spectator.