Is this quarterback Deja vu, Vikings?

25 years later, the Vikings find themselves in a surprisingly similar position at quarterback

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This article is a contribution from Joshua R. Smith, a longtime Purple Insider subscriber and is the sports editor and an award-winning writer at The Frederick News-Post in Maryland

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By Joshua R. Smith

Here we are. Training camp awaits, and it’s either 2025 or we’re in some kind of weird NFL time warp. Because the young, inexperienced quarterback who is taking over the built-to-win Minnesota Vikings is seen widely as something of a mystery, a gamble or both.

Bookmakers envision mediocrity. Pundits are split.

Hold on. Where are we? And what year is it?

This feels familiar.

The organization took a risk in the offseason by not re-signing a rocket-armed QB who flourished during one go-round in purple. Mixed in was a headline-stirring courtship involving an aged, pigskin-spinning legend.

The Vikings instead chose to give the ball to the previous year’s unfledged first-round pick — who sat and watched as his teammates won and won and made believers until they ran into a Rams squad that could not have been a worse playoff matchup.

Is this just deja vu?

That unproven QB soaked up NFL life for a full season, under the radar. He has the requisite physical traits and a willingness to learn. He is polished before microphones.

“But it's one thing to talk it,” said Robert Smith, the Vikings’ star running back from 1993-2000. “You’ve got to go out and walk it, too. And that's something that you don't know until the guy’s actually out there, doing it.”

Smith was speaking here about the Vikings’ quarterback in June 2025.

He could have said it in June 2000.

Daunte Culpepper then; JJ McCarthy now.

Going back

The parallels between those 2000 Vikings and these 2025 Vikings are sundry and striking.

It’s the Silver Anniversary of the last time a Vikings team primed for success turned to a QB cloaked in question marks a year after drafting him.

Many variables differ, sure. Smith noted we must be careful when making such comparisons so far apart. NFL football has changed considerably since “Gladiator” won the Oscar, since Destiny’s Child — the R&B group, not McCarthy — was making hits.

“It’s been a long time,” said Smith, for example, when asked about a specific memory from 2000.

No matter. There are so many lines tracing from today back toward Culpepper’s first year as the Vikings’ starter that an examination promises to be fun and maybe educational.

So let’s go back.

Back to when NFL broadcasts did not have superimposed first-down lines on our screens.

Back to when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were in the Vikings’ division.

Back to when Smith was busting off long gains, Randy Moss was Mossing dudes and Cris Carter was plucking one-handers.

Back to when Conan O’Brien was still doing his “In the Year 2000” sketch on Late Night, gazing comedically into the future even though it had become the present.

Now, as history appears to be repeating itself with the Vikings, it’s time we look once again into the past.

The past, Conan?

That’s right. All the way back to the Year 2000.

‘You don’t know’

Count Robert Smith among those who were skeptical — at least initially — upon watching Daunte Culpepper.

Meanwhile, Todd Steussie, who was entering his seventh season as the Vikings’ starting left tackle in ’00, was not overly concerned but certainly curious about the prospects Culpepper represented.

As for Dennis Green, it’s fair to wonder just how confident the Vikings head coach and de-facto General Manager was in his raw quarterback, no matter the public proclamations.

During the 2000 offseason, the Vikings had options to parse and a colossal dilemma: Bring back Jeff George, hand the reins to Culpepper or sign … someone else?

They had made a run to the NFC divisional playoffs behind the 32-year-old George. A hired rifle if there ever was one, he went 9-3 as a starter in 1999 after Green benched Randall Cunningham.

But those “Greatest Show on Turf” Rams were too much for Minnesota on Jan. 16, 2000.

For one, Cris Carter — the vociferous, prodigious Vikings receiver — favored George’s return, per reports.

With George a free agent, the rumor mill churned — and it was revealed in early March that Green offered Dan Marino, then 39, a contract. The Miami Dolphins had moved on from the always-intense face of their franchise, who was deciding if he wanted to hobble around for one more year, perhaps chucking lasers to Moss and Carter.

Despite declaring Culpepper the presumptive starter entering camp, Green worked with Marino’s agent to mold a contract that bent around Minnesota’s salary-cap limitations. The coach spoke on WFAN in Miami about what a “perfect merger” it would be.

Even so, to this day Smith insists he had no inkling such a union was possible.

“Honestly, I never heard that, really,” he said, chuckling. “That’s hilarious.”

A Sports Illustrated cover story later that year reported how Green had “made a point of checking in with Culpepper and informing him about any behind-the-scenes developments” regarding Marino.

Much of this loosely mirrors what transpired in March of this year after Sam Darnold, the Vikings’ 2024 QB darling, signed with Seattle. Soon, Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell was answering questions about whether he’d been listening to overtures from former Packers nemesis Aaron Rodgers (yes, he had) and whether he’d briefed McCarthy on those exchanges with the 41-year-old (also, yes).

But today’s Vikings stuck with their preordained McCarthy Plan. In 2000, despite a deal seemingly in place, Marino was the one who killed the notion by retiring.

Steussie said the Marino talk never permeated the locker room or created a distraction. The lineman was ready to “see how it went” with Culpepper. Marino had hung it up, anyhow.

But that’s not to say Steussie was fully in favor of Culpepper when Minnesota picked him in '99 just months after the team had come within a missed field goal of a trip to the Super Bowl against Atlanta.

Steussie remembers a complaint churning in his head then that was also popular among Skol Nation.

“Gosh, why did we [draft Culpepper] when we could have gotten Jevon Kearse or something like that?” Steussie said of the freakish defensive end from Florida who made Vikings’ fans hearts flutter with fondness. “And it was like, did we really need to get a promising quarterback?”

“Promising” wasn’t even promised. Not after Culpepper struggled through his first spring and preseason, doing nothing to endear himself to title-thirsty followers.

“At the beginning of the year, it looked so bad,” Smith recalled of that 1999 Culpepper. “[It was] like, ‘I don't know how this guy's gonna do it.’ What you just saw was incremental improvement and just the comfort that he got.

“And I wish that JJ had that.”

He refers to the opportunity for McCarthy to take practice reps and lead the Vikings’ scout team. Culpepper, who was Minnesota’s No. 3 QB in ’99, at least got to run plays against the first-team defense that season — granted, many were of a preordained, hollow variety.

“You’re not really getting better doing scout team,” said Brad Johnson, a former Vikings quarterback who also developed into a starter under Green in the 1990s.

During his scout-team sessions, Johnson said, a defensive coach held up an offensive play that mimicked a tendency for that week’s opponent.

“So you're not really running your play; you’re not checking your protections,” Johnson said. “You’re just dropping back, and usually they’ve got it circled where they want you to throw to. So, you’re getting action as far as, ‘Can I make the throw?’ But they also tell you, ‘Just throw to this guy on the corner route.’

“So I can't say that makes you better. It's really hard until you get the actual reps with your team, in your huddle, calling the play.”

Culpepper seldom got to do that as a rookie. But at least he was on the field, making headway that guys like Smith noticed. As Johnson points out, Culpepper had chances, albeit minimal, to go through the entire process of plays: install, walkthrough, rep and review.

McCarthy was out of commission with a torn meniscus after Minnesota’s first preseason game on Aug. 10, 2024 — banished to months of rehab, virtual reps and weekly meetings with O’Connell. He had no way to test timing on drops or gain command.

Green clearly had a plan for Culpepper’s year on the bench.

“This is a perfect situation for you,” Green told Culpepper, per the December 2000 SI story. “You are the only quarterback in this draft who’s going to be given a chance to watch.”

It’s not difficult imagining O’Connell making that exact argument to McCarthy last year.

Still, Smith said Culpepper had a “looooong way to go,” drawing out the word for emphasis.

And he traveled that looooong way tediously.

“I remember Daunte … he just worked so hard to get better, and then once it was his job he was just That Guy,” Smith said.

For what it’s worth, current Vikings leaders like Harrison Smith and Jonathan Greenard have praised McCarthy’s work ethic, mindset and relationship-building. His receivers have also touted the “zip” on his ball — all factors in becoming That Guy.

Johnson impresses how crucial it was for McCarthy, even while injured, to watch Darnold handle the scope of the job. Much like Johnson did watching Warren Moon in the mid 90s. Much like Culpepper did behind George and Cunningham.

“I gained a lot of knowledge from Warren Moon,” Johnson said, “as far as, how do you deal with throwing a touchdown? How do you you deal with throwing an interception, getting booed out of the stadium? How do you deal with the media? How do you deal with the prima donna receiver? How do you deal with the coach the next day? How do you deal with learning the next gameplan? How do you deal with winning four games and all this media [attention] comes your way? How do you deal with it on a weekly basis?

“It's a lot that goes into just being a professional.”

While different, Culpepper and McCarthy’s situations were each advantageous.

McCarthy got a year to mature physically, which Johnson underscored. McCarthy enters this training camp as a celebrated potential savior, fans hanging hopes on snippets of video and sound and his championship college pedigree despite a blank pro résumé.

Come camp in 2000, fans might’ve been more anxious than stoked. Culpepper had a similarly paltry body of work.

But his body? Decidedly not paltry. That’s what got folks talking about him. He was a monstrous 6-foot-4, goodness knows how many pounds (Steussie surmised around 270) and could run like a tailback.

His credentials — he was drafted No. 11 out of Central Florida, far from the glitz and microscope of McCarthy’s Michigan — were questioned all the way up until Week 1.

Whether these transitions then and now brought excitement or skepticism, fear of the unknown accompanied both.

“You never know how … relying on a young quarterback is going to go,” Steussie said, “because they go through peaks and valleys and it's just — you don't know.”

QB Friendly

Outside of that feeling, there is little comparable between the rookie seasons Culpepper and McCarthy spent on the sidelines.

To boot, their physical frames, playing styles, general strengths and weaknesses are clearly disparate. Their college experiences differed greatly.

But two big factors are similar as they became QB1:

Their offenses had a reliable returning core of players.

Their head coaches employed schemes that, in either era, have been considered “quarterback friendly.”

Walking into his Vikings huddle, Culpepper was buttressed by Robert Smith, Carter, Moss, Steussie and Korey Stringer. To that point, they represented 12 Pro Bowls and three All-Pros.

The Vikings’ backup QB was an unthreatening Bubby Brister, so Culpepper needn’t look over his shoulder.

Not that he would have anyway.

“Make no mistake about it — when he was in the huddle, that was his damn huddle,” Smith said. “And everybody knew it and was glad that he understood the importance of that role.”

Steussie emphasized there was “no abbreviated gameplan for Daunte.” And the Dennis Green offense that he helmed had a history of yielding production from any man who stepped under center.

Of that offense, Johnson generally said:

“Everything made sense.” And it was “like learning the alphabet.” And it was “easy to understand.”

Johnson spent eight years in the scheme Green employed, though the offensive coaching staff had changed hands by the time Culpepper gained the reins. Johnson, who went on to win a Super Bowl guiding Jon Gruden’s intricate scheme (think “Spider 2 Y Banana”) in Tampa Bay, said Minnesota’s system was straightforward to pick up because the terminology was logical.

“The names and numbers, they meant something,” Johnson said. “Thirty years later, I could still tell you the playbook, because it's like learning the alphabet.”

The volume of plays wasn’t small, but it wasn’t overwhelming. For Steussie, the flexibility within formations made the offense easily digestible.

“We had a lot of different ways to run the same set of plays,” he said. “We could make a handful of plays look drastically different.”

Plus, Johnson said, the QB could easily change a running play or check from run to pass at the line based on the defensive look. He had a way out of a bad play.

Envision a QB shouting “Kill, kill!” Or “Opposite, opposite!” Or envision a QB hand-signaling to a receiver who, for instance, has single coverage. That’s so ingrained in the game now that any viewer can pick up what’s happening. But 25-plus years ago, the Vikings were ahead of the curve, Johnson said.

“So you know what the checks were versus different coverages, and everyone [on the offense] did,” he said. “So it's just easy to continue to grow in the system each week, from week to week. And then, if you have mismatches, you can check to certain things depending on who your receivers were. To me, that's what ‘quarterback friendly’ means.”

That’s they type of system Culpepper took over — with the immeasurable bonus of throwing to the savvy, talented Moss and Carter.

Additionally, because of Culpepper’s size and athletic profile, there were built-in options based on down and distance. These were RPOs before the RPOs of today existed.

“I want to say we had a couple, like, essentially empty draws where Daunte would drop back 3, 4 yards and then run,” Steussie said. “And essentially that was a run-pass option, where if he didn't have at least two linebackers assigned to him as a shadow — run, Daunte.”

Culpepper rushed for 474 yards and seven TDs in 2000.

Such wrinkles won’t be incorporated into O’Connell’s offense for McCarthy. Though the green QB does boast a play-making element, his job will be distributing the ball in a scheme that thrives on clear first reads and route combinations that expose defensive weaknesses.

Bobby Peters, who does in-depth scheme breakdowns for his Alert The Post newsletter and wrote “The 2024 Minnesota Vikings Complete Offensive Manual,” said O’Connell’s offense reduces a QB’s need to diagnose defenses after the snap and masterfully fits personnel to plays.

Like the system Culpepper took over, it makes a QB’s decisions easier, magnifies mismatches and emphasizes downfield shots.

In other words, it’s QB friendly.

With O’Connell’s scheme, Peters said, “you can tell a quarterback that doesn’t have a ton of experience, even on a short week of practice, ‘We have a really good idea that the first read on this play is going to be open, so have the confidence to let it rip at the top of your drop.’

“And that helps a ton, because you don’t have to post-snap process. You don’t have to try to decipher the coverage from the defense as much. You’re not having to scan the entire field. You’re just kind of: ‘This guy’s one on one. I’m going here.’”

Peters added that O’Connell’s five- and seven-step drop passing game is built so the top of the drops are tied to the timing of the first read — meaning, the ball comes out efficiently.

Justin Jefferson’s mere presence, to say nothing of his elite receiving talent, will be a further boon for McCarthy.

“Having Jefferson helps, whether it be pre-snap identification of the coverage or post-snap,” Peters said. “You can recognize if he’s double-teamed. Or, if he has a one-on-one, you know he’s going to win it.”

But how about density? Is there too much in this playbook for a first-year starter to master? Even as a casual observer of KOC’s system, Johnson said it has “a high volume of plays.” (Peters opined it’s somewhere in the middle among all NFL teams.) Either way, it behooved McCarthy to have an entire year to absorb it and cram with KOC.

McCarthy has O’Connell — a former NFL QB and the reigning Coach of the Year — figuratively holding his hand.

“There's this thing called QB rating,” said Johnson, who heaped praise on the way Green’s schedule helped him maximize his preparedness. “Well, there’s also a QB rating that should be tied to your coach.”

Still, uncertainty hangs over the entire operation. Because of McCarthy.

Same feeling in 2000 about Culpepper.

And then the season started.

And he reeled off seven straight wins.

In the Year 2000

Americans were barraged with coverage of Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston’s marriage. “The Sopranos” was showered with critical acclaim. Britney Spears was singing “Oops … I Did it Again” on the radio. Nokia had the hottest cellphone.

Not so hot in the summer of 2000: predictions of Minnesota Vikings success. Vegas preseason odds were set at 7.5 wins. In a 16-game schedule, for a talented team that lost in the previous season’s divisional playoffs, it could not have been a more middling projection.

Culpepper, of course, was the reason.

The Vikings’ offseason had also been unremarkable. Guard Randall McDaniel, center Jeff Christy and receiver Jake Reed, all stalwarts, signed elsewhere. Tight end Johnny McWilliams and defensive end Bryce Paup qualified as Minnesota’s notable free-agent additions. Defensive tackle Chris Hovan was its top draft pick, at No. 25, that spring.

Could this team improve on the ’99 season? Doubts abound. An ESPN.com preview dubbed Culpepper “the NFL’s mystery man.”

However, Steussie said he was encouraged by the giant, 22-year-old QB, who was willing to learn and endure chirping from star receivers, yet was “comfortable in his own skin.”

“You want someone to be genuine,” Steussie added. “Don't try to be someone they're not. … You’ve got to be you, and then try to work within those constraints. And I think he did an effective job of that.”

A strong preseason led to the Week 1 opener at home against Chicago, which was starting its own quarterback from the touted Class of 1999. Cade McNown was taken one spot after Culpepper.

Three quarters in, fears may have been mounting among the Metrodome faithful. The Vikings trailed 20-9 entering the fourth quarter. Later that night, amid the ESPN highlights, Chris Berman referred to Culpepper as “one of the biggest gambles this year.” But Culpepper took steps to squash that notion.

He rushed for three straight TDs — including two in the fourth, from 7 and 4 yards, that looked like the run-pass options Steussie detailed. The Vikings won 30-27, even though Culpepper completed just 13 passes for 190 yards.

“Daunte was a guy that, you know what, once in a while he'll save your ass,” Steussie said. “I really don't think I ever had a quarterback that was anything like him throughout my career.”

In Week 2, Culpepper threw three picks and lost a fumble near the red zone, but Minnesota held off the Dolphins at home, 13-7.

The Dolphins of QB Jay Fiedler.

The next week in New England, Culpepper was sacked four times and threw for 170 yards, but Smith (29 rushes, 91 yards) helped dominate time of possession and Paup sacked Drew Bledsoe to kill a comeback attempt in a 21-13 win.

After an early bye, Charlie Batch and the Lions came to town on Oct. 1. The teams were neck and neck until the fourth, when Culpepper went deep to Moss — who beat a double team in the end zone for a 50-yard TD — and Smith got loose for a 65-yard score in a 31-24 victory.

In the postgame locker room, with reporters present, Moss and Culpepper had a mild confrontation centered on expectations and trust.

Hard to imagine any sort of public boiling point occurring after a win or a loss between Jefferson and McCarthy in the age of ubiquitous cameraphones and Twitter. But these were different times — and different dudes.

Regardless, that was also something of a turning point — one that could be identified even by the untrained eye of this reporter while combing through the 2000 season. By Week 6, Culpepper had fully grasped the scheme and the card he could play thanks to Moss — just throw it up.

Even with such a potent duo, those Vikings had no way of knowing after five weeks that a trend was cementing: Possessing a dangerous offense and a lackluster defense, they were becoming experts at going to the wire to beat lower-tier QBs.

Culpepper and the Vikings went up against this Murderer’s Row: McNown (twice), Fiedler, Batch, Doug Flutie, Shaun King (twice), Jake Plummer, Steve Beuerlein, Stoney Case (after Batch got hurt early in the second Lions game) and a spent Troy Aikman (late in his final season).

That added up to 11 games. The 2000 Vikings went 11-5 against opponents that finished with a .479 winning percentage.

When they played stronger QBs — Bledsoe, Brett Favre (twice), Kurt Warner and Peyton Manning — they had four of their five losses.

Some other highlights from that season:

— In Week 6 on Monday Night Football, Culpepper put Minnesota up late against Tampa Bay with another bomb to Moss, from 42 yards, in a 30-23 win that didn’t go in the books until King’s Hail Mary was batted around and found the turf.

— Seven days later, Culpepper completed just 15 passes for the second straight week — but three went for TDs in a road win over Chicago.

— Buffalo’s Flutie, subbing for an injured Rob Johnson, damn near pulled out a ball-control win (the Bills had a 22-play field-goal drive in the game). But the Vikings prevailed 31-27 by overcoming an ugly third-quarter Culpepper interception, scoring 18 points in the fourth — the key shot being a 39-yard strike to Moss — and surviving Flutie’s Hail Mary attempt.

— Their first loss was a 41-13 shellacking by Tony Dungy’s Bucs in Week 9. Culpepper was terrorized early by Warren Sapp, lost a fumble, threw two picks and finished with a 62.9 rating.

— Week 10 was an OT loss to Green Bay in the Antonio Freeman Catch game. Culpepper racked up three more INTs, but Minnesota should’ve won on a short, last-second Gary Anderson kick — except the snap was bad and holder Mitch Berger threw a boneheaded pick instead of falling on the ball (it was only first down).

Were these Vikings truly good? Were they beneficiaries of a weak schedule? More so, was Culpepper the real deal?

Some stats:

Culpepper had a league-leading 33 TD passes, the second most game-winning drives (four) and tied for third with three fourth-quarter comebacks. Minnesota had the second highest yards-per-completion (13.1) and yards-per-passing-attempt (8.2), behind only the explosive Rams.

It had the sixth-best rushing attack in the NFL (2,129 yards) and the highest yards-per-rush (5.0).

Smith had the most carries (295) and rushing yards (1,521) of his career and played all 16 games for the first time. Along with a solid O-line, he represented the type of running game long desired by O’Connell’s current Vikings — scaring defenses into changing their fronts and coverages and marrying ideally with the passing game. Plus, per the SI story from 2000, Culpepper had quickly proven adept at reading defenses.

Yet the Vikings ranked 24th in scoring offense.

Meanwhile, their defensive core had grown old. They had the 24th rated unit and surrendered the fourth-most yards against a meek QB slate.

But they earned a wild-card bye. And they got a break when New Orleans, a minus-5.5 underdog at home, stunned the Rams 31-28 after punt returner Az-Zahir Hakim fumbled a fair catch with less than 2 minutes to go.

A week later, the Culpepper-Moss connection helped destroy the visiting Saints 34-16. That question-mark QB threw for 302 yards and three TDs and rushed for 51 yards.

But it all crashed down against the Giants in the 41-doughnut NFC Championship Game loss that was over by halftime and delivered another playoff devastation to a franchise rife with them.

Instructions from 2000

Here we are again. McCarthy, with just one preseason game under his belt, is set to assume control of a Vikings team that looks like a Super Bowl contender. Oddsmakers, though, have their win total at just 8.5.

McCarthy, of course, is the reason.

So, what lessons from Culpepper’s inaugural season as a starter are applicable for McCarthy, who wasn’t born until 2003?

Translation is difficult 25 years later. But at the least, he can lean on the comfort of the superlative cast around him in a system that will buffer his transition.

Culpepper didn’t play hero ball. As he got his feet under him, he trusted his coaching and figured out how to utilize his unique skills within the framework of the offense. Green set him up for success.

But Green, Smith, Moss, Carter, Steussie, et al could only give him so much help. He needed to perform.

“His job is his job to do. I can’t help him do that,” Smith said. “It’s on every quarterback, really, to do their job and to take command and give the guys around you confidence.”

McCarthy seems to grasp the gravity of what is at his fingertips, according to his comments from minicamp.

“The thing I learned about myself,” he said, “is just the weight that I hold every single day and just showing up, being the same guy every single day, bringing that attitude, effort and that energy.”

Steussie said Culpepper kept an even demeanor despite the pressure he was under and the inevitable roller-coaster ride of any NFL season.

“Daunte,” he said, “knew the best thing Daunte could do is just go be Daunte.”

How often have reports come from the Vikings this year about McCarthy — a famed meditator — being himself, exhibiting confidence, strong personal skills and an ability to connect?

Of McCarthy, for example, 14-year veteran safety Harrison Smith has said, “He’s is own person and kind of speaks his mind.”

Steussie said that will go a long way.

“It speaks of maturity, because there's always going to be down times. You're going to have some struggles, but if you're genuine and kind of grounded, you're never really going to get too high and never really going to get too low. And it seems like that's a good recipe to start a career.”

But McCarthy won’t be facing McNown, Fiedler, Batch, Flutie and Beuerlein. No, it’ll be the likes of Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Jayden Daniels, Jared Goff and Jalen Hurts.

The ’25 Vikings appear well-equipped to handle what ranks as a tough schedule. Jefferson, Jordan Addison and TJ Hockenson are friendly targets for any passer. A bolstered offensive line and running game can create favorable circumstances and aid in clock control.

And Peters, the scheme guru, expects O’Connell will get the best out of McCarthy while breaking him in, even if it might look a little different than when Darnold was unleashing deep shots weekly.

“They have a core of what they like to do,” Peters said. “And obviously you’re going to have four or five game-specific gameplans that, once he’s the starting quarterback, he’ll be able to rep all week in practice. He’ll be comfortable with this play calls.

“I doubt they’ll overload him. I think Kevin O’Connell has a really good feel, not only as a play-caller but as an ex-quarterback, of what can be too much for a young guy.”

McCarthy will need to take advantage. If he can capitalize on opportunities, there should be little letdown from what Darnold accomplished last season.

And in the event of trouble, he also has a failsafe. He can look for Jefferson — and just throw it up.

ESPN’s Mike Clay projects McCarthy to finish with 537 attempts, 3,705 yards, 26 TDs, 14 INTs and 39 sacks. Those aren’t far off from Culpepper’s Pro Bowl stat line in 2000: 474 attempts, 3,937 yards, 33 TDs, 16 INTs and 39 sacks.

Minnesota’s defense seems outfitted to assist the process. It would be shocking if Brian Flores’ guys ended up ranked as low as 24th, like that ’00 Vikings defense.

The setup, conceivably, could not be much better.

“It's all going to be on JJ, though,” Smith said. “Ultimately, he's the one that needs to put in the work. He's the one that needs to go out there and play the game.”

How about that?

Aside from the quarterback’s name at the start of the quote, Smith might as well have speaking all the way back in the year 2000.

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Photo credits:

Jan. 9, 2005; Green Bay, WI USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback Daunte Culpepper throws in the second quarter of the 2004 NFC Wild Card Playoff Game against the Green Bay Pakcers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Photo By Matt Cashore-Imagn Images

Jun 10, 2025; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) practices during minicamp at the Minnesota Vikings Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images