The TV broadcast showed J.J. McCarthy on the sidelines of the Minnesota Vikings vs. Detroit Lions game during the conclusion of Week 18 of the previous season, dressed in street clothes, watching the game and supporting his teammates, just like he did at every game he went to in 2024.
However, following his appearance on the show, viewers noticed that McCarthy appeared somewhat thinner than he had before his knee injury in August of last year. In fact, ESPN’s Kevin Seifert subsequently disclosed that the young quarterback shed nearly 20 pounds during his first season with the Vikings while he recovered from his injuries.
Later this week, Ben Goessling of the Minnesota Star Tribune claimed that McCarthy’s weight had returned to above 200 pounds and that he is “approaching his pre-draft weight of 218 pounds now that he’s resumed strength training after his rehab.”
J.J. McCarthy, the quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings, should never have been concerned about his weight.
For the past few weeks, far too many individuals have exploited McCarthy’s weight loss as a point of contention. He seems to have lost weight while recuperating from a serious injury, making him the first professional athlete to do so.
McCarthy weighed about 20 pounds heavier at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine than he did in the last game of his collegiate career less than two months before, yet nobody mentioned this. Before he was even a part of a professional team with one of the league’s top training facilities, he somehow accomplished it.
Every time Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell has discussed McCarthy’s recuperation over the past several months, he has always mentioned how things have been progressing well and according to plan. O’Connell never once expressed worry about the weight of the young Minnesota signal-caller or the status of his injury rehabilitation.
So, what new false narrative will McCarthy’s detractors try to incite in the coming months given that he is expected to be back to playing weight by the time the Vikings take the field for OTAs this spring?
Leave a Reply