QB J.J. McCarthy reportedly signing 4-year, $21.85M fully guaranteed contract with Vikings
Quarterback J.J. McCarthy is reportedly signing his NFL rookie deal with the Minnesota Vikings on Friday, which will be a four-year, $21.85 million contract that is fully guaranteed, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
McCarthy, the Michigan product whom the Vikings selected No. 10 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, will get a $12.71 million signing bonus, and the contract will feature a fifth-year team option.
With the Chicago Bears signing top pick Caleb Williams and the Vikings taking care of McCarthy, that leaves Vikings outside linebacker Dallas Turner and Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle Amarius Mims as the only two players from the 2024 NFL Draft class who are unsigned as training camps get underway.
While the Vikings traded up for McCarthy at the draft, he's not expected to open up training camp as the team's starter. Earlier this month, head coach Kevin O'Connell said that Sam Darnold's performance at OTAs earned the veteran signal-caller the No. 1 job for now.
In O'Connell's eyes, McCarthy, who was a two-year starter with the Wolverines, is a work-in-progress, as he told ESPN's Kevin Seifert.
"But I want to be very clear that the expectation is for this player to not be perfect," O'Connell said. "He's going to have growing pains, he's going to learn on the fly. I'm not trying to remove that aspect of it, either, but [deciding when he will play] is not something you can write up on a board. It's a feeling."
McCarthy threw for 2,991 yards and 22 touchdowns while leading Michigan to the national title in the 2023 season.
The Vikings begin their preseason schedule on Aug. 10 and will open the 2024 NFL season on Sept. 8 against the New York Giants.
