Kevin O’Connell isn’t treating J.J. McCarthy’s current spot on the Minnesota Vikings’ depth chart as set in stone.
With the Vikings having chosen Kyler Murray over McCarthy as their No. 1 quarterback for the 2026 season, attention has turned to whether Carson Wentz could also move ahead of McCarthy before Week 1. O’Connell addressed that possibility on Wednesday and confirmed McCarthy is the team’s No. 2 quarterback right now, but he made it clear the situation could still change before the regular season begins.
“[McCarthy] has taken all the [second-team] reps in practice, and he's done really well. You think about from the time we made that announcement till now, there's been some plays where I've been proud as heck of some of the [things he's done].
...There's been some really good stuff, but I want those guys feeling like they're competing. The philosophy [is] around making our quarterback room competitive and [allowing] that to [raise] the standard of not only our team but our offense.
...So we'll see how these next couple weeks play out, and we're gonna do what's best for our team.”
The question hanging over Minnesota is whether the Vikings are better served by keeping McCarthy one play away from the offense or giving that role to Wentz.
At first glance, it would be easy to assume McCarthy would slide into the backup role after missing out on the QB1 job. But if the Vikings are truly trying to maximize their chances each week, the case for Wentz is hard to ignore.
Wentz’s five appearances with Minnesota last season weren’t eye-popping, but they were steady enough. More importantly, his work lined up more closely with the offense O’Connell wants to run.
Compared with McCarthy in 2025, Wentz posted a better completion percentage, 65.1 to 57.6, a higher passing yards per game average, 243.2 to 163.2, a stronger passer rating, 85.8 to 72.6, and a better EPA per dropback, +0.06 to -0.08. He also had the lower interception percentage, 3.0 to 4.9.
Those numbers make it tougher to picture Minnesota opening the season with McCarthy still sitting second behind Murray, especially with O’Connell likely eager to avoid any added pressure on himself this year.
For now, McCarthy remains the No. 2 quarterback. But O’Connell’s comments leave the door open, and the next couple of weeks could determine whether that stays the case when the Vikings line up against the Green Bay Packers in Week 1.
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J.J. McCarthy Has Plenty Riding On Vikings Preseason Game
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