Retired NFL Vet Cannot Get Enough of Vikings QB

J.J. McCarthy, who the Minnesota Vikings selected No. 10 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, has yet to make a regular season start or take an NFL snap, after a torn meniscus ended his rookie season before it could start.

But that is all in the past now, because exactly one week from today, he’ll be under center in Chicago, on Monday Night Football, against the NFL North rival Bears, where he’ll get thrown into the national media fire immediately.

Expectations for Minnesota’s upcoming season vary wildly, mostly depending on how the pundit views JJ McCarthy’s 2025 outlook, following a lost rookie season. Minnesota has a playoff caliber roster ready to win its first postseason contest in Kevin O’Connell’s tenure. But do they have the QB to do it?

Former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky knows a thing or two about evaluating the QB position. He played seven (rather unsuccessful) NFL seasons at quarterback, and he’s been analyzing the game for ESPN since retirement.

Dan Orlovsky has lofty expectations for J.J. McCarthy

Orlovsky, a proven JJ McCarthy stan, is also pals with local insider Darren “Doogie” Wolfson (KSTP). Dan has taken every opportunity that has come his way to prop up the future of JJ McCarthy (and Max Brosmer too). If you thought he’d slow down that hype train with Wolfson, you thought wrong.

Initially Wolfson questioned whether McCarthy could live up to the production Bo Nix generated for the Denver Broncos last season. Orlovsky, however, laughed that suggestion off as a low bar for JJ to clear, under QB whispering Vikings head coach, Kevin O’Connell.

Caught up the other day with former #NFL QB and ESPN analyst @danorlovsky7. He's a big J.J. McCarthy fan. Snippet of our conversation and link to all of it is below. #Vikings https://t.co/9du8tXUzFr pic.twitter.com/jZGTvtwOsH

— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) September 1, 2025

“Yeah, I would have higher expectations, candidly. No offense to Bo [Nix], but if we just took the offenses and went, ‘who’s got better players?’ You know, Minnesota. They have Justin [Jefferson]; Hockenson, big time player.

I think that yes, you want that lateral comparison that this is the style of football played. I’ve said this, I get asked it often on TV, is it fair?

J.J. was a ridiculously highly recruited kid coming out of high school. He went to Michigan. He won the National Championship and was the 12th pick in the draft. It’s totally ok for us to have unrealistically high expectations of how he is going to play on this team.”

Dan Orlovsky – Interview with Darren Wolfson (KSTP)

Related: QB Expert Would Take JJ McCarthy Over Everyone

When discounting McCarthy as a running back merchant, people continue to overlook and discredit the part that Orlovsky hammers the table for. Sure, he didn’t run the Air Raid offense at Michigan.

But the Wolverines did run a very pro-style offense, and one that the Vikings are trying to mimic with their new-look offensive line and backfield. Oh, and JJ also lead the Wolverines to a National Championship, in part thanks to a national best 72.3% completion rate.

Minnesota Vikings franchise QB has the talent, but also… the weapons

That accuracy led to 22 touchdowns and just four interceptions. Across 40 collegiate games during his three seasons at Michigan, McCarthy owned a 49/11 TD/INT rate. And he did all that with far less weapons than he has at his disposal in Minnesota.

Kevin O’Connell isn’t the type of play-caller who likes to kill clock, but the Minnesota Vikings enter 2025 with the best offensive line they’ve had in probably a decade or more. They may also have the best running back they’ve presented since rookie Adrian Peterson stepped into an RB room that just saw Chester Taylor gain 1200 yards the season prior.

“If he was the quarterback of a significantly depleted roster, different conversation. This was a team that was in the 1-seed all the way up into the final weeks of the season last year. J.J. has a track record, it’s not like it came out of nowhere. I really believe he should have, production wise, numbers wise, very much so rival what Sam [Darnold] did last year.”

Dan Orlovsky – Interview with Darren Wolfson (KSTP)

Related: Everyone’s Favorite New Viking Makes NFL Futures List

Sam Darnold was a third overall pick that flamed out in the NFL and O’Connell got 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns out of him. McCarthy has had a full year to learn the expectations of his head coach, comes in with the same or better pedigree, and has better talent around him.

If you’re going to doubt him at this point, that’s a personal choice. Maybe McCarthy will show he’s raw and needs more time to develop. The amount of prominent figures clamoring for you to notice the new Vikings signal caller though has become deafening.