MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — J.J. McCarthy burst into Minnesota's locker room in Detroit last week in the afterglow of a critical victory for the Vikings, meeting his boisterously welcoming teammates with an enthusiasm and intensity that took the party for the visitors to an even higher level.
As coach Kevin O'Connell wrapped up his postgame speech, saving the last game ball for his young quarterback, McCarthy's expression turned menacing through the sweat-smudged thick black paint on his cheeks. After he accepted his award with a hug from the coach, McCarthy called the players in for one more huddle to implore them to pivot their focus forward.
“I just know to give him the football, deliver the message that I’d like to deliver, and then get the hell out of the way for my own personal safety in that moment,” O'Connell said.
For a 22-year-old player whose career is merely three games long, McCarthy sure seems to have the captaincy part down.
“He’s got something to him. I love protecting for him,” left tackle Christian Darrisaw said. “It’s fun to go out there and do what we do when you know you’ve got ‘Nine’ back there."
After a head-turning fourth quarter rally to win the opener at Chicago against his childhood favorite team, McCarthy returned to Minnesota for a shortened week of practice, missed one day to join his fiancee for the birth of their son, and mostly struggled through his home debut in a decisive defeat by Atlanta. During that game, he badly sprained his ankle, an injury he played through that night but needed six weeks to fully recover from.
Now, after a potentially season-saving performance by the entire team in Detroit, McCarthy finally has another opportunity to play in the comfort of U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday. The Vikings (4-4) host Baltimore (3-5), another back-on-track contender aiming for a much better finish than start.
“We saw his leadership, his ownership, how he commanded the offense, all the great talents he has, what kind of quarterback he can be,” linebacker Blake Cashman said. “That’s what makes him a winner, and we’re counting on him to be like that the rest of the year.”
Not only have his Vikings teammates taken to calling to him by his single-digit jersey number, McCarthy revealed to reporters this week that he also refers to himself as ‘Nine,’ an ode to his intense gameday persona.
He said it developed last season while resigned as a rookie to rehabilitation work on his surgically repaired knee, the product of “built-up anger that was just ready to explode” from the absence of playing time.
“I chose to harness it instead of letting it go to a self-destructive kind of way,” McCarthy said. “I love feeding that wolf.”
When Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores was coach of the Miami Dolphins in 2021, they beat the Ravens 22-10 by blitzing Lamar Jackson with reckless abandon. Over the last couple of seasons in particular, the two-time NFL MVP award winner has fared well on plays when he has faced extra pass rushers. Jackson has taken 17 sacks in five games this year. Seven of those came in Week 3 against the Lions.
“I tried to focus on everything I could to get better, and blitzing was one of them, because early on in my career, I was getting sacked like crazy,” said Jackson, who'll make his 100th career regular-season start on Sunday. “Just getting older in my career, it’s like, ‘Man, we have to get the ball out.’"
This will be the second foe with extra preparation and recovery time the Vikings face in a three-game span, with the Ravens having played on Thursday the week before. Though the Vikings had a 10-day rest period after a Thursday game last week, the Lions were fresh from their full bye.
The advantage the Vikings had in Week 7 out of their bye was lessened a bit by Philadelphia's previous game being on Thursday. The Vikings also played with one fewer rest day than the Falcons after opening the season on Monday.
The Ravens allowed 177 points over their first five games, but they’ve permitted just 39 in their last three.
Better health has been a key, but the secondary got a boost by the acquisition of safety Alohi Gilman a month ago in a trade with the Los Angeles Chargers. The Ravens made another addition this week, dealing for pass rusher Dre’Mont Jones at the trade deadline after he had a sack in each of his last four games for Tennessee.
Gilman’s arrival has allowed his former college teammate at Notre Dame, two-time Pro Bowl pick Kyle Hamilton, to play predominantly in the slot closer to the line of scrimmage in a three-safety nickel defense with first-round draft pick Malaki Starks.
“It’s an incredible challenge,” O’Connell said. “We feel great about our skill guys, but we’ve got to show up ready for a really tough task and test.”
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
