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Vikings Football
Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) takes part in drills during an NFL football team practice in Eagan, Minn., Tuesday, April 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
DAVE CAMPBELL
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4 min read
EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — While everyone else in the NFL 's record crop of first-round quarterbacks in the draft last year launched their careers on the field, J.J. McCarthy was forced to begin his with film study and in the training room for the Minnesota Vikings.
McCarthy would hardly consider that a wasted season, even though the torn meniscus in his right knee made him the first quarterback selected in the first round since the common draft era began in 1967 to not play any games as a rookie because of injury.