The Vikings welcome McCarthy back to coaching

The Minnesota Vikings are back Goodbye weekis not yet ready to judge JJ McCarthy in or out of the fullback position next He missed the past three games With a sprained ankle.

McCarthy returned to practice with the Vikings for their light practice on Monday afternoon, after spending most of the week working with coaches on some of the finer points at the position where the injury has hampered progress. Coach Kevin O’Connell said he was “very lucky” to have that time on the field with his student.

He also said his decision on whether McCarthy will play Sunday against Philadelphia or Carson Wentz will make his fourth straight start won’t come until later in the week, suggesting there’s no rush to make a simultaneous public announcement.

“Those two things could be on different timelines,” O’Connell said.

Wentz played through a sore non-throwing shoulder to lead the Vikings to Decisive victory over Cleveland after suffering a hard hit during that game in London on Oct. 5, but O’Connell raised no concerns about his availability to face the Eagles, the team that drafted him second overall in 2016, after a full week of rest. What the coach seemed concerned about was providing enough time for McCarthy to get back up to speed, considering he missed a month of full team practice time, coming off a rookie year spent rehabbing from knee surgery.

“You can talk about routes and certain throws and certain plays and things like that, but this is the foundation of throwing mechanics from the ground up that he’s really gotten used to since he got here,” O’Connell said. “I’m very excited to officially have him back in training. I don’t necessarily want to put a percentage on how healthy he is. I think this week is going to be huge for our entire team.”

As for McCarthy specifically, O’Connell has said repeatedly since the injury that he stresses the importance of honing his lower-body passing mechanics, ensuring his eyes and feet are properly synchronized with each throw. His performance over the first two games left a lot of work for him, including patience with the in-game plan.

“One of the things I gain from watching Carson play is just the power of the completion that maybe doesn’t necessarily always go first or second down,” O’Connell said.

The Vikings (3-2) have a lot more to focus on than whether or not the 10th overall pick in the 2024 draft returns to center this week. From penalties to fumbles to smaller issues in between, the entire offense has to do better whether behind McCarthy or Wentz.

“We’ve won games with different players this year,” O’Connell said. “We’ve found a rhythm sometimes, and as much as the quarterback plays a big role in it, we have to make sure our offense plays with it.”

Getting close to full strength

The Vikings opened a 21-day window for linebacker Blake Cashman (hamstring) to return from injured reserve, putting him on track to play on Sunday, after nearly six weeks out of injury. He praised the health and performance staff for their guidance on a plan to “bulletproof the hamstring to help prevent recurrence.”

“Not being able to reap the benefits or rewards of playing out there on Sunday, it hurts the soul a little bit, but that’s where you have to understand that you have to get healthy and stay flexible and be patient through this process,” Cashman said.

Joining McCarthy and Cashman on Monday’s return to practice list were left guard Donovan Jackson (wrist), center Michael Jurgens (hamstring) and right tackle Brian O’Neill (knee). Running back Aaron Jones (hamstring) must miss at least one more game with the injury. Center Ryan Kelly (concussion) will be out indefinitely. Edge player Andrew Van Ginkel (neck) is progressing in fielding drills on the sideline, but has not yet been cleared to return.