Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy has had an up-and-down start to training camp. The Year 2 QB flashed early but has reportedly had a rough few practices against an imposing defense early in training camp. The young QB described them as learning moments against a D that hasn't given him many easy throws or clean pockets.
"Honestly, constant improvement," McCarthy said on Wednesday, via The Minnesota Star Tribune. "Learning every single day and when the periods don't go your way, you're always asking why. It's never a loss. You're always learning from it. ... Those periods where they really get you, I feel like that's where we learn the most about ourselves and our offense."
The Vikings defense, which can make veteran quarterbacks wet themselves at times, has reportedly been in McCarthy's face quite a bit the past several practices. In Tuesday's red-zone session, the QB struggled, completing a reported 3 of 11 attempts in the restricted area.
"Missing by inches," McCarthy said of the red-zone drill. "That's what happens when you're down in the red zone. You got to be detail-oriented and really specific with where you're putting the ball. But there were a lot of good things on tape ... just more great reps to put under my belt."
It must be noted that we're just over a week into training camp, Justin Jefferson isn't practicing, and star left tackle Christian Darrisaw is just returning from an ACL tear. Overreacting to a few practices is a fool's errand. This is the time of year for growing and learning, particularly for a player who missed all of last season.
"Not having those reps last year, that's something you miss out on when you take a substantial amount of time off from throwing the football," McCarthy said. "You got to find that touch again. There were a lot of throws in OTAs where I felt I could've had a better outcome if I had that touch. Just learning from failures and trying to get better."
If McCarthy's daily lessons become stepping stones to improvement, he'll be fine by Week 1. If he continues to struggle through the preseason and into late August, then tougher questions can be asked about the Vikings' young quarterback.
