J.J. McCarthy didn’t have an easy time against the Chicago Bears. It was a complicated game, and the first half ended badly for both him and the Vikings. But in the second half, things changed considerably after Kevin O’Connell told the young quarterback that he was the one to win the game.
O’Connell revealed his “secret” message to McCarthy after the game. “I told [McCarthy] at halftime, ‘You are going to bring us back to win this game,’ and the look in his eye was fantastic,” the head coach said. The second half for the rookie quarterback would also start with a pick-six.
Despite the bad start to the second half, McCarthy got lucky, and the Bears only scored one touchdown in the third quarter. The inspiring message from his head coach finally did its job in the fourth quarter when the team scored 21 points thanks to three touchdowns from McCarthy.
O’Connell clearly wants McCarthy to continue playing at this level, adding, “We don’t win this game unless J.J. plays the way he did in the second half and most importantly kept the belief of his football team behind him.”
McCarthy Joins Steve Young’s Level
McCarthy not only had a good game and secured the Vikings’ first victory of the season, but he also took the opportunity to break a fourth-quarter record that no other quarterback had achieved since Steve Young did it in 1985.
NFL+ reported on X, “J.J. McCarthy is the first starting QB with a 10+ point 4th quarter comeback in his NFL debut since Steve Young in 1985.” They also added, “He is the only such QB since 1950 to do so on the road.”
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