Kevin Seifert, ESPN editor-in-chief
EAGAN, Minn. — Minnesota Vikings rookie quarterback JJ McCarthy reported soreness in his right knee to medical officials Monday, coach Kevin O’Connell said, and will not participate in the team’s night practice.
The news came two days after McCarthy made an encouraging preseason debut Saturday in a 24-23 win over the Las Vegas Raiders. He completed 11 of 17 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns while carrying twice for 18 yards, and there was no indication of injury during or after the game.
O’Connell pulled him late in the third quarter once he reached his projected 30-snap count.
“As a precautionary measure,” O’Connell said Monday, “we’re going to continue to evaluate him and run further tests. (He’s a) very important player, obviously, so we want to make sure we’re smart before he goes out there, making sure we have a good understanding of his situation.”
O’Connell later described McCarthy’s situation as “a sort of routine pain that a lot of players after their first pre-season game sometimes find themselves with, and it was something we wanted to be smart about.”
O’Connell said he didn’t know if McCarthy would travel with the team this week to Cleveland, where the Vikings will participate in two joint practices with the Browns and then play a preseason game Saturday. While Sam Darnold has been the Vikings’ No. 1 quarterback throughout training camp, McCarthy was expected to start getting more practice snaps with the first-team offense this week, O’Connell said.
The Vikings have a total of four quarterbacks on their training camp roster, with Nick Mullens and Jaren Hall joining Darnold and McCarthy.
