Confusing JJ McCarthy Return Timeline Muddied Even More by Vikings’ Flight Plans

After the first loss of their 2025 season Sunday night, the Minnesota Vikings are back at TCO Performance Center in Eagan this week trying to get their ship pointed back in the right direction before their week three matchup against the Joe Burrow-less Cincinnati Bengals.

Unfortunately, that’s easier said than done, especially when nearly half of your team may be out with varying injuries or mysterious illnesses. The headliner on Minnesota’s injury report this week, though, is 2024 No. 10 overall draft pick, JJ McCarthy.

The former Michigan Wolverine was added after a shocking announcement by head coach Kevin O’Connell on Tuesday that the 22-year-old QB1 suffered an ankle sprain in the Vikings’ week two loss against the Atlanta Falcons.

McCarthy is expected to miss 2-4 weeks and he’s already been ruled out for Sunday afternoon’s matchup vs Cinci. But how long will Minnesota’s young franchise QB actually sit out for? That question is more difficult to answer.

Tuesday morning, reading between some lines, it’s starting to sound like JJ McCarthy could be ready for his return, either week 4 or week 5, BEFORE the Minnesota Vikings’ week 6 bye. According to one very plugged in (homegrown) NFL insider, however, his return timeline is being muddied by a looming two-week trip overseas.

JJ McCarthy’s return timeline being muddied by Minnesota Vikings trip overseas

Remember, this offseason the Vikings accepted and helped orchestrate a two-game trip to Europe in 2025. In week 4, Minnesota is scheduled to play against Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, in Dublin. Then, for week 5, they will hop over the UK border to face Kevin Stefanski and the Cleveland Browns, in London.

And Tuesday morning, just a week or so out from when the Vikings are scheduled to leave on their international business trip, Tom Pelissero (NFL Network) is reporting concern within the organization that the extended flight could add complications to JJ McCarthy’s recovery process and return timeline.

According to @TomPelissero, the Vikings’ trip overseas could play a huge factor into JJ McCarthy’s returns timeline…

“The schedule is a factor here with JJ McCarthy… What you don’t want to do with a high ankle sprain is get on an 8-hour flight that’s going to cause the thing… pic.twitter.com/XIm1t1YRnU

— Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) September 16, 2025

“The Vikings are expected to start Carson Wentz on Sunday against Jake Browning and the Bengals because of what we have reported as a high ankle sprain for quarterback JJ McCarthy that is expected to sideline him this week and quite possibly more.

Now the schedule is a factor here with JJ McCarthy…What you don’t want to do with high ankle sprain is get on like an 8 hour flight that’s going to cause the thing to swell up. So there might be something to be said for not having JJ make, at least, the initial trip to Dublin.

And also, given where that by falls, you could end up getting JJ back, having a month off, but only missing 3 games, potentially come back for a really difficult stretch in the schedule.”

Tom Pelissero – Good Morning Football (NFL Network)

Related: Minnesota Vikings Ravaged by Injuries Yet Again

Of course, high ankle sprains are tricky, so nothing is guaranteed. But Tom’s report seems to suggest that the biggest factor holding McCarthy back from a week 4 return under-center could be the Vikings’ concern over their flight to Dublin, itself.

How big of a risk would McCarthy flying to Dublin actually be?

McCarthy’s ability to play through his injury on Sunday lends even more evidence to the notion that McCarthy could be ready to return sooner than later… if the Minnesota Vikings decide to risk an 8 hour plane ride across the pond (Google has it measured at 7 hours, 45 minutes).

According to the Mayo Clinic, swelling in injuries while flying is common, and rarely dangerous. That’s especially true for a young, healthy kid like JJ McCarthy. But as Pelissero mentioned, it’s the distance of Minnesota’s flight to Ireland that could add additional risk.

Per Mayo Clinic, that risk comes in the form of “Deep Vein Thrombosis” (DVT). However, Mayo’s flight time threshold for additional DVT risk is set at 12 hours, not eight.

Leg and foot swelling during air travel is common. It’s usually harmless. The most likely reason for it is sitting for a long time without moving during a flight.

Sitting with the feet on the floor for a long time causes blood to pool in the leg veins. The position of the legs while seated also increases pressure in the leg veins. This plays a role in swelling by causing fluid to leave the blood and move into the surrounding soft tissues.

A dangerous blood clot called deep vein thrombosis (DVT) sometimes causes leg swelling. But the risk of getting DVT on an airplane is very low for healthy people, especially on flights that last under four hours. In general, the chance of getting DVT starts to rise on flights over 12 hours.

Mayo Clinic