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Vikings' J.J. McCarthy Dealt Surprising QB Ranking Over Caleb Williams

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Trevor Squire | Last updated May 23, 2025 3:57 PM ET

Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy has a lot of working against him compared to his fellow 2024 first-round quarterbacks.

He is the youngest and most inexperienced of the six-man first-round quarterback draft class at just 22 years old. The other five quarterbacks have plenty of playing experience, averaging 1,422 pass attempts across their college careers.

McCarthy entered the NFL with just 713 pass attempts and missed his entire rookie year with a meniscus injury.

While it's debatable if and when McCarthy would have seen playing time with Sam Darnold putting forth a Pro Bowl-caliber season with the Vikings, McCarthy is still behind compared to his contemporaries.

But, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF), that's not a concern.

In PFF's quarterback rankings ahead of the 2025 NFL season, McCarthy came in ranked surprisingly at No. 21 overall despite never playing a regular-season snap in the NFL yet. He was the third-ranked quarterback in his draft class behind Jayden Daniels (No. 6) and Bo Nix (No. 19).

"I’m leaning on my personal evaluation here, as I had McCarthy as the top quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft," PFF's John Kosko wrote on May 20. "We didn’t get to see him as a rookie, but his 2023 season at Michigan — where he earned a 92.2 PFF grade and a 93.4 passing grade — highlighted everything you want in a young passer. If he’s fully healthy in 2025, and considering what Sam Darnold managed in this offense, McCarthy is set up to succeed."

McCarthy was ranked in Tier 4 of Kosco's rankings: "Young players with a wide range of potential outcomes."

He was ranked ahead of Drake Maye (No. 22), Michael Penix (No. 23) and Caleb Williams (No. 24).

Kosko's evaluation of McCarthy as the top quarterback over Williams is also a head-turner. Williams has all the physical and playmaking talent of a No. 1 overall pick but must learn to throttle those instincts and make the safe play more often.

Meanwhile, McCarthy is poised to play more conservatively under Kevin O'Connell's system before he unleashes more of his playmaking potential.

Any quarterback in the fourth tier has the potential to catapult themselves into high-end starter territory like Daniels did last year -- but Kosko views McCarthy as the safer option entering the 2025 season.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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