Windy City Gridiron
The Chicago Bears have been rolling since week 3, winning 6 of 7 games, but they got off to a bumpy start to the season when they dropped their first two games. One of those games was against the Minnesota Vikings. We don’t need to revisit how poorly that fourth quarter went, but the Bears have an opportunity to exact revenge for the week one loss this week in Minneapolis.
A lot has changed since week one for both of these teams, so we sat down with Christopher Gates from the Daily Norseman one more time to find out what’s going on with JJ McCarthy, Kevin O’Connell, and the rest of the Vikings squad.
1. Since we last spoke before week one, it feels like you guys have had quite a roller coaster at quarterback. Do some Vikings fans think that Kevin O’Connell did a “soft benching” with JJ McCarthy, or does everyone believe he was truly injured?
The Vikings have had a roller coaster at quarterback since Fran Tarkenton retired, I think. I’m sure there is a section of Vikings fans who believe that O’Connell did “soft bench” J.J. McCarthy, but I think that’s a bunch of nonsense. For better or for worse, Kevin O’Connell’s future as the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings is quite likely tied to the success or failure of J.J. McCarthy at the quarterback position. This franchise really hasn’t made very many attempts at developing a long-term solution at quarterback, and O’Connell made it clear that he wants the opportunity to have his guy in there. Throw in the fact that high ankle sprains are notoriously tricky injuries, and I think anyone who’s trying to peddle the “soft benching” story isn’t on board with the McCarthy selection in the first place.
2. How does JJ McCarthy look since he has returned from injury? There were some viral clips of Justin Jefferson not playing hard during the Vikings’ last game, and many were speculating it was because he hadn’t bought in on JJ McCarthy.
He’s looked like any other quarterback who’s started four career NFL games. He’s had some moments of real brilliance (and hasn’t always gotten help in those spots), and he’s had some moments that make you scratch your head and wonder if he’s ever actually played football before. There are plenty of times that you can see exactly what it is that O’Connell sees in McCarthy, and as he gains experience, those moments are (hopefully) going to come more frequently than the head-scratching ones. I know that Jefferson had a few moments last week against Baltimore that didn’t exactly cast him in a great light, but I don’t think he has any personal issues with McCarthy or anything like that. Jefferson’s already played with a bunch of different quarterbacks in Minnesota, and he can play a huge role in helping McCarthy’s development. I think he takes that pretty seriously, as he’s never given any real indications that he’s not happy with...
