JJ McCarthy will succeed as a QB in the NFL despite multiple people doubting him

McCarthy was instrumental in leading the Michigan Wolverines to a national championship.

JJ McCarthy will succeed as a QB in the NFL despite multiple people doubting him

JJ McCarthy (Image via IMAGO)

There is just one day left until the NFL Draft 2024 takes place in Detroit. For the quarterback class of this year, there has never been a more nerve-wracking period. In the last week, the draft stock of players has constantly been on the move.

In the battle of the QBs, Caleb Williams is expected to be the undisputed 1st pick. However, between Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye, and JJ McCarthy there seems to be an equal chance of them being picked at the number 2 spot.

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Out of all the quarterbacks in this class, J.J. McCarthy seems to be overlooked by most. It is shocking considering that McCarthy led the Michigan Wolverines to a flawless 15-0 record in the NCAA to a National Championship win. Since Joe Burrow and the LSU Tigers’ National title run in 2019-20, the starting QBs of the winning team have turned out to have mediocre careers as professionals. Mac Jones and Stetson Bennett are prime instances.

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Is J.J. McCarthy being subjected to the same treatment? Are scouts staying wary of him because of this pattern? It is a possibility. Add the fact that the Wolverines had Blake Corum as the running back and Jim Harbaugh as the head coach, with so much stacked talent, it is easy to overlook the quarterback’s achievements.

The Wolverines offense primarily focused on running the ball throughout the season, owing to this, McCarthy’s skillset and role in the team’s record season was viewed as being a facilitator and more of a ‘system quarterback’ rather than exceptional talent.

JJ McCarthy will be the steal of this draft among quarterbacks

Throughout the season, JJ McCarthy showed his arm strength. Despite having fewer opportunities to make dropback passes in comparison to other QBs, he showcased an exceptional ability to throw passes over the mid-field. That is a skill that will prove to be immensely valuable in the NFL, while deep throws down the field are entertaining to watch and QBs search for opportunities to throw them. In most cases, it is hard for receivers to create separation and hence, the ability to throw over defenses mid-field will prove to be more valuable.

JJ McCarthy
JJ McCarthy (via IMAGO)

Watching McCarthy’s game, he is a quarterback that can create open lanes to throw the ball in, his pocket presence improved significantly this season when compared to his first year as a starter in Michigan. He has learned to remain patient and does not leave the pocket prematurely as he used to. Further, his ability to remain calm and hold his own when the game is not going in his favor is laudable.

In situations where there is no room to throw, McCarthy is not going to sit back and get sacked. He can run. His athleticism is easy to overlook, and he does not get enough credit for running the ball in situations where it becomes essential. His athleticism impressed scouts at his pro-day as per Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. What makes McCarthy the most interesting QB prospect in this draft is the fact that he has all the intangibles that are required to excel in the NFL.

His pre-game ritual of meditating, his ability to lead a locker room, his resilience, and his ability to maintain his composure and not cave in rough situations make him a QB with immense potential. These are skills that many starting QBs in the NFL lack today. If put in the right situation, under a head coach who is conducive to his style of play, McCarthy will be a problem in the NFL.

Jim Harbaugh was able to devise an effective system around JJ McCarthy, centered on his strengths. The Wolverines’ successful season made one thing clear: McCarthy is not a quarterback from whom you can expect to fit right into your system, he is not the missing piece of the puzzle for an NFL team; he is rather a QB around whom you build a system.

Despite his strengths and potential, there are areas of concern that a team drafting him will need to address. These concerns are also the reason for the ambiguity surrounding his draft position. McCarthy’s footwork tends to be unconventional at times, while making throws, his faulty footwork ends up resulting in an incompletion and impacts his accuracy rate. The good news is this is an area that can be improved. Teams can quickly correct his footwork and accordingly make him get used to it.

His consistency can improve. Realistically, JJ McCarthy is not a guy you draft to make him your franchise QB immediately. He is a guy that teams should draft, give him a year to serve as a backup to a veteran QB, and then be allowed to play in the league. The best spot for him is New York, the Giants should ideally consider drafting McCarthy because the team has Daniel Jones for now and that would give the rookie enough time to adapt to the NFL and be prepared when he is ultimately called upon as a starter.

Kurt Warner, the legendary NFL quarterback, shared another concern with respect to McCarthy. He said on ESPN’s Get Up on Friday that the young QB has never been put in a position wherein he has had the pressure to show up and carry a team.

We never saw the pressure on him to have to make throw after throw after throw, week after week to carry his football team. You will have to do that in the NFL with the way the league is built, with the talent at the quarterback position. So, that is a huge question for me because we've never seen it.
Kurt Warner via Get Up

JJ McCarthy has the talent and character to be a potentially great QB in the NFL

JJ McCarthy may not be the most pro-ready quarterback in this class, which is why analysts are skeptical about him. In addition to that, despite having a record of 28-1 with the Wolverines, he was surrounded with a supportive cast of talented players. However, the odds of that happening in the NFL are slim. Teams expect the QB to lead them and take over when going gets rough on a week-to-week basis. McCarthy is yet to show us that he can do that. He is a great guy at QB, but the bigger question is, can he be THAT GUY at QB?

Former Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy
Former Michigan quarterback JJ McCarthy (Via Imago)

Despite the criticism he has been subjected to, McCarthy has all the makings of a star quarterback. He is most likely never going to be a Patrick Mahomes kind of quarterback but honestly; he is a generational QB. McCarthy has the potential to be the quarterback who can facilitate the team’s offense primarily but can take over a ball game when needed and lead his team to multiple Super Bowls.

Ultimately, J.J. McCarthy may not end up being the best quarterback in his class, but he will be a steal for a team. Despite the doubts about him succeeding as an NFL QB, he has all the makings of a good or potentially great franchise QB.

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