The Minnesota Vikings announced Tuesday that rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy will undergo surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee after complaining of soreness this past weekend, and will be out indefinitely. McCarthy tweeted: “Love you Viking nation. I’ll be back in no time. Amor fati”
Coach Kevin O’Connell said a day earlier that McCarthy experienced soreness in the knee and undergo tests, and confirmed Tuesday the quarterback tore his meniscus. O’Connell said of the timeline of McCarthy’s return (per ESPN): “That’s totally, totally a medical decision. Certainly, what’s best for the long-term health of J.J. McCarthy will be the priority. I don’t have that answer and really won’t be a part of determining that answer. … I have total complete trust in our medical staff and also the people that will be performing the procedure. Hopefully we’ll be having a shorter timeline rather than a longer timeline, but the most important thing right now is making sure, from a medical standpoint, that we have identified the injury. The potential [details of the] severity will come when we do that procedure.”
McCarthy, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, completed 11 of 17 passes for 188 yards, two scores and an interception in the Vikings’ preseason opener, a 24-23 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday in Minneapolis. He left the game because of a snap-count restriction, not due to his knee issues (though O’Connell later confirmed that the knee injury did occur during the game).
NFL journeyman Sam Darnold, who spent last season with the San Francisco 49ers, is in line to be the Vikings’ starter for their Week 1 game against the New York Giants. After Darnold and McCarthy, the Vikings also have quarterbacks Nick Mullens and Jaren Hall in training camp.
The Vikings will face the Cleveland Browns in another preseason game at 4:25 p.m. EDT Saturday in Cleveland. They will play the Philadelphia Eagles in their preseason finale Aug. 24 in Philadelphia.
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