J.J. McCarthy a first-rounder in latest ESPN mock

Michigan Wolverines football junior quarterback J.J. McCarthy is the program’s most talented and accomplished passer in recent memory, and the 2024 NFL Draft hype has already started. In ESPN’s latest mock draft from analyst Matt Miller, McCarthy heads to the Minnesota Vikings with the No. 21 overall pick.

In 13 starts at Michigan last year, McCarthy completed 64.6 percent of his passes for 2,719 yards last season with 22 touchdowns and five interceptions, also adding 70 rushes for 306 yards and 5 scores. His dual-threat ability and arm talent should continue to tantalize front offices despite numbers that may not be as gaudy as his peers.

There could be a youth movement on the way with the Vikings and its uncertain future with its quarterback situation. It is also worth noting that the mock’s order is set by current Super Bowl odds prior to NFL regular season games kicking off.

“The upcoming free agency of quarterback Kirk Cousins — who is turning 36 next summer — will force the Vikings into a hard decision early in the 2024 offseason,” Miller writes. “McCarthy showcased excellent dual-threat ability in 2022, throwing for 22 touchdowns to five interceptions and adding five more scores on the ground. The 6-3, 202-pound passer is a play-action master and excels on rollouts and moving pockets. That’d fit with Minnesota coach Kevin O’Connell just fine, and McCarthy would benefit from Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison at wide receiver.”

USC’s Caleb Williams and North Carolina’s Drake Maye are considered the consensus 1-2 at quarterback heading into next year’s draft. Williams heads to the Arizona Cardinals in the ESPN mock, while Maye goes third overall to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers is the only other passer taken ahead of McCarthy, coming off the board at No. 8 overall to the Washington Commanders.

It would take a massive campaign from McCarthy to put himself in the 1-2 conversation, but things can always change quickly in draft analysis. It might also take a bit of an unleashing of his skillset at Michigan, which is something that head coach Jim Harbaugh spent the offseason thinking about.

“Well, it’s a really good question,” Harbaugh said. “And something I’ve really thought about. I look at J.J.’s first whole first season as a starter and all the things he faced. Good, bad, cheered, booed. Hit run, throw — everything he did, it’s about as good as you could be. As a first-year starter, no question about it. I don’t think anybody’s ever seen anything — I haven’t seen anything like that, first-year starting quarterback. 13-0 on Christmas and we’ve never been undefeated at Christmas. And then I call that a season for him.

“The TCU game in itself I think was practically like a whole season of experience. Because of all the things that happened. Behind, come back, really behind, come back, really good. Every up-down hit. He was just in so many football situations in that game, it was almost like a whole season. So it was really good.

“This program has become like — good. OK, we lost that game, but it drives us, it makes us even more hungry. Something else comes up — good. We’ll work on that, we’ll fix that.”

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