The Rundown: JJ 'in sync,' offensive adjustments, another injury
Breaking down the comments from KOC and JJ McCarthy on Wednesday as the Vikings prepare for the Giants
By Matthew Coller
EAGAN — The Minnesota Vikings are preparing for a matchup with the New York Giants on the road on Sunday. Kevin O’Connell and JJ McCarthy chatted with the TC media on Wednesday, let’s dive into the takeaways from what they said and more…
JJ ‘in sync’
Over the last two weeks, JJ McCarthy has led the Vikings to 65 points on offense and completed 31-of-47 passes for 413 yards, five touchdowns and one interception.
What was working for him in Dallas?
“Every play felt in sync,” McCarthy said. “It felt on time. It didn’t feel like there was any indecisiveness. And when there was, and I couldn’t see over the line or something like that, I was dishing the ball out and just putting it in play. So I feel like that growth was something that really stood out.”
His put-it-in-play throws have certainly been at the center of his recent success. On short throws against the Cowboys, McCarthy went 9-for-13 for 84 yards. Previously he had struggled with getting the ball to his underneath options. Even with two quality games in that area he is still only averaging 4.8 yards per attempt on throws between 0-10 yards.
McCarthy was also not sacked in Dallas and he only lost 12 yards to sacks against Washington. What has led to the improvement in pocket presence?
“Emphasizing where my outlets are and checkdowns, just knowing where to scramble,” McCarthy said. “It’s one thing to get out of a fight or flight situation, but it’s another thing to… just be aware of where the slide [protection] is going…because that’s usually going to be where the gaps that are going to open up and what concepts are over there, what routes are over there. So just understanding the offense more as a whole has helped tremendously.”
The question for McCarthy is whether he can keep building on these clear improvements over the last two weeks.
Offensive adjustments?
Following comments from O’Connell (and others) about simplifying the offense, there have been a lot of questions from fans about what types of adaptations have been made that led to McCarthy playing much better recently.
Purple Insider asked KOC that very question on Wednesday.
One of the things he pointed to was the use of the big boys. The Vikings have increased CJ Ham’s snap count and we have seen a ton of Josh Oliver and numerous three-tight end sets as well.
“It’s all part of staying true to the foundation of a lot of the things that we do, maybe just doing it out of different personnel groupings and trying to pinpoint each week the benefit of running plays out of certain groupings,” O’Connell said.
The head coach emphasized trying to get into favorable situations on second down, focusing on trying to stay in scenarios where they can run or pass. Using play-action against Dallas, McCarthy went 6-for-7 passing for 87 yards and a touchdown.
In terms of operating with the big fellas on the field, McCarthy said:
“Being able to be as versatile as offense as possible with different groupings and things like that, it just adds another layer when you can have those big people who can also catch the ball and get open and make plays with the ball in their hands,” McCarthy said.
Per SumerSports here is how McCarthy has performed with different big groupings this season:
12 Personnel (1 RB, 2 TEs):
Passer Rating: 77.2
Attempts: 27
Completions: 19 (70.4%)
Passing Yards: 147
Touchdowns: 2
Interceptions: 2
13 Personnel (1 RB, 3 TEs):
Passer Rating: 145.5
Attempts: 7
Completions: 5 (71.4%)
Passing Yards: 61
Touchdowns: 1
Interceptions: 0
21 Personnel (2 RBs, 1 TE):
Passer Rating: 85.4
Attempts: 11
Completions: 8 (72.7%)
Passing Yards: 80
Touchdowns: 1
Interceptions: 1
Josh Metellus has shoulder surgery, Christian Darrisaw won’t be shut down
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