Rival fans loved to claim that Michigan football national championship-winning quarterback J.J. McCarthy made a mistake leaving college after his junior year. They were so sure that he wouldn’t be drafted, at least not on day one.
Yet, McCarthy proved his doubters wrong by being drafted in the first round with the No. 10 overall pick. However, it took some time before McCarthy became officially official with his new team, the Minnesota Vikings.
Finally, months after most of his colleagues from the draft had signed their contracts, McCarthy followed suit on Friday, inking a four-year guaranteed deal worth $21.85 million, according to ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter.
Sources: Minnesota Vikings No. 10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy is signing a four-year, fully-guaranteed contract worth $21.85 million that includes a $12.71 million signing bonus and a fifth-year team option. pic.twitter.com/Cc9CE8A4nj
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 19, 2024
McCarthy will be battling veteran Sam Darnold for the starting role with the Vikings in his first year. Though he wasn’t a part of an offense that prioritized the pass, McCarthy threw for nearly 3,000 yards last year, coming nine yards shy of that mark.
Not to mention, he’s a winner. McCarthy not only won the Big Ten all three years he was in college (two of which he was the starter), he won a championship his senior year of high school as the QB for IMG Academy.