J.J. McCarthy mocked to Vikings at No. 11 by CBS Sports' Chris Trapasso
CBS Sports' Chris Trapasso has the Vikings taking Michigan quarterback J.J McCarthy with the No. 11 pick in the upcoming draft.
"The Vikings go with McCarthy, who has plus arm talent and athleticism, two things the quarterback spot has lacked in Minnesota during the productive Kirk Cousins era," Trapasso wrote in his latest mock draft Wednesday.
The Michigan QB was the fourth quarterback off the board with Oregon's Bo Nix being taken one pick after by the Broncos at No. 12 in Trapasso's mock.
McCarthy and Nix are presumed to be part of the second tier of a loaded QB class in this year's draft, with Washington's Michael Penix Jr. lumped into that tier by many analysts. The Vikings, currently holding the No. 11 pick, look to be out of the range of the top-tier of QBs – Caleb Williams, Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels – barring a move up. Whether that second tier is worthy of being taken as high as No. 11 is a big question, and right now, many would see it as a reach but there is still plenty of time for McCarthy and Penix to change the narrative.
"I think in today's NFL you have to factor in athleticism a little bit more at the quarterback position, more than ever. And probably a lot more," said Trapasso on a recent episode of Purple Insider with Matthew Coller.
"'McCarthy's] younger, and I think that is huge," he continued. "You can say you want experience, and maybe for the Vikings they do want someone that is a little bit pro ready and you probably will get that with Bo Nix. I think J.J. McCarthy has a better overall skillset, a little bit better of an athlete, a little bit stronger of an arm and he's played a fair amount of football, too. This isn't somebody like Mitch Trubisky or Mark Sanchez coming in with one full year as a full-time starter."
McCarthy, 21, started the past two years at Michigan, culminating in a National Championship in January. Bo Nix, soon to be 24, started five seasons between Auburn and Oregon.
"Bo Nix threw more passes but a lot more screens, schemed open throws, that 77% completion percentage [is] very inflated," Trapasso argued. "I thought there were more classic NFL-caliber throws from J.J. McCarthy."
2023 passing scheme comparison (according to PFF)
- McCarthy: 81 play-action passes, 31 screen passes.
- Nix: 171 play-action passes, 105 screen passes
"I don't adore [McCarthy] as a prospect but I think he's someone that comes in with a good amount of experience," Trapasso said. "And again, he's young and I think the upside is there from his ad-libbing ability and just the arm talent that he possesses."
One of the big knocks on McCarthy is that the overall roster at Michigan was so stacked it was easy for him to look good. That's a hard argument to fight considering the Wolverines went 28-1 over the past two seasons.
Another knock on McCarthy is how little Michigan appeared to ask of him in the offense. In the national title game, Michigan dialed up just 22 passing plays. In a 24-15 win over No. 9 Penn State, McCarthy attempted just eight passes while the team had 42 rushing attempts. Three times in 2023 McCarthy had fewer than 20 dropbacks.
Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy celebrates a play against Alabama during overtime of the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., on Monday, Jan. 1, 2024.
© Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK
"He's definitely not perfect," Trapasso continued. "Just for perspective, where I have J.J. McCarthy graded now, pre-combine, is right between where I have Will Levis graded and Bryce Young graded. And maybe I was a little bit too high on Bryce Young as we saw the lack of his stature can really impact a quarterback and hinder him early in his career."
Trapasso had Bryce Young as QB3 and Will Levis as QB4 on his 2023 draft big board, with Young as the fourth overall prospect and Levis ranked 15th overall.
"Why was Jim Harbaugh not unleashing him after two, three years as a full-time starter? I'm not totally sure and I think that's something the Vikings and all those teams from pick eight or nine all the way to the early 20s will probably have to ask about," said Trapasso. "I like to see the big-time throws at the collegiate level. If it's something we're comparing J.J. McCarthy to Bo Nix, I didn't see as many of those 'holy crap' throws from Bo Nix, and he's going to be 24 in his rookie season. J.J. McCarthy is 21, going to turn 22. So, two years of just age difference really matters for the ceiling for those players and how much more you can put on his plate."
McCarthy's college head coach, Jim Harbaugh, boldly predicted earlier in the week that the Michigan QB will be the first taken in the upcoming draft.
"Arm talent, athleticism, 'it' factor, winning with numbing repetition. Don't be surprised if/when he's the number one QB off the board," Harbaugh told Colin Cowherd. "That's my prediction right now. When people get a load of J.J. and how he can throw the ball, how he spins it, his athleticism, his intelligence, talk about 'it' factor, the competitiveness he has and they get around him and they really start digging in, they start talking to him... That's an early prediction for the 2024 NFL Draft."
Who the Vikings pick at No. 11 and how they address the QB position will be a talking point throughout the offseason. Enjoy!
