'Amor fati': J.J. McCarthy says he'll back from injury in 'no time'

Joe Nelson | Aug 13, 2024

J.J. McCarthy / Minnesota Vikings

Was J.J. McCarthy struck by a bolt of faith when he suffered a torn meniscus in his first NFL game?

"Amor fati," McCarthy wrote on X moments after the Vikings revealed that the 21-year-old future of the franchise suffered a torn meniscus that will require surgery. Amor fati is latin for "love of fate," which would indicate that McCarthy believes his injury was unavoidable and that it was his fate to suffer it in order to reach his maximum potential in the NFL.

"I'll be back in no time," McCarthy wrote.

Love you Viking nation. I’ll be back in no time. Amor fati

— J.J. McCarthy (@jjmccarthy09) August 13, 2024

If McCarthy's meniscus surgery is simply a trim, he could be back in a matter of weeks. If it's a fully torn meniscus, he could be out for months. Doctors won't know until they're operating on his knee and a date for the surgery has not been set.

McCarthy, the 10th overall pick in the 2024 draft, suffered the injury in Minnesota's preseason win over the Raiders on Saturday. Head coach Kevin O'Connell didn't reveal when the injury occurred, but McCarthy played through it and finished 11-of-18 passing for 188 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.

"At no time did he think it was something that would take him out of the football game, not allow him to play," O'Connell said Tuesday.

According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, athletes can continue playing immediately after suffering a meniscus tear but they gradually experience more stiffness and swelling in the 2-3 days that follow. That matches up with McCarthy reporting a knee soreness on Monday, 48 hours after his debut.

The injury is a clear setback for McCarthy. He appeared to be challenging Sam Darnold for the starting job. Whether he would've won the job will never be known, but there was also always a chance that McCarthy would be the backup and essentially redshirt his rookie season before taking the reins in 2025. It's a scenario that is now far more likely to unfold, though we won't really know for sure until we learn the severity of McCarthy's torn menisicus.