Vikings demote former starting QB J.J. McCarthy to third string

J.J. McCarthy lost out to Kyler Murray in short order for the Minnesota Vikings' starting quarterback role. Now, the 2024 first-round draft pick is tumbling further down the team's depth chart ahead of the season opener.

Carson Wentz will serve as the primary backup to Murray for the Week 1 contest against the Green Bay Packers, Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell announced on Wednesday, Sept. 9. McCarthy, meanwhile, will serve as the third-stringer.

O'Connell said that the arrangement was a "week-to-week" matter and not necessarily indicative of a season-long plan.

Still, O'Connell maintained that Wentz "gives us the best chance to win" this week.

"Carson, he's got almost 100 career starts," O'Connell said. "What he was able to do last year from a standpoint of very limited repetitions but being able to apply a career's worth of experience, that's kind of what you have to do as a backup quarterback – especially early on, when so much of the emphasis is on getting Kyler as comfortable as we can get him."

The Vikings announced Murray as their starter on Aug. 11. Though the expected move threw McCarthy's future with the franchise into question, Minnesota opted not to trade or cut its…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/sports/