The 2024 NFL Draft will be held from Thursday, April 25th through Saturday, April 27th at Hart Plaza in Detroit. Michigan quarterback JJ McCarthy has been rising rapidly up draft boards in recent months, and you could hear his name called in the top 10 on Thursday night. After a successful career in Ann Arbor, we'll see if he can perform at a high level in the NFL ranks.
McCarthy arrived at Michigan as a top prospect in 2021 and spent his freshman season as a backup to then-starter Cade McNamara. He won the starting pitcher over McNamara at the start of the 2022 campaign, starting one of the most accomplished two-year runs in program history by a QB. His accomplishments in his two years as a starter include a 27-1 record with two wins over Ohio State, two Big Ten titles, two College Football Playoff appearances, and, of course, the 2023 national championship. ing.
He finished his college career with a 67.6 percent completion rate for 6,226 yards, 49 passing touchdowns, and just 11 interceptions. He also scored 10 career rushing touchdowns on the ground.
JJ McCarthy: Scouting Report
McCarthy's emergence as a top-10 pick in this draft has fueled debate in recent months. He showed great leadership qualities as the starting QB on a national championship winning team and was very efficient through the air. On top of that, he has pretty good size at 6-foot-2 and 219 pounds.
But the Wolverines, under then-head coach Jim Harbaugh, implemented a power-run-heavy scheme with an offense centered around running backs Blake Collum and Donovan Edwards. McCarthy only had a few weeks with more than 25 pass attempts and only one game in 2023 with more than 300 yards. Because Michigan has a huge talent advantage most weeks, the QB isn't tasked with carrying the offense much with his arm, leading some to label him a “game manager.” Ta. That's why it's a little strange that McCarthy was suddenly promoted as the top candidate.
NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein praised his ability to focus and make positive plays late in games, but also had some criticism. Some of his evaluations are as follows:
… McCarthy lacks frame depth and plus arms. He's pretty composed in the pocket, but he's average as a pocket passer. Ball placement and timing must be improved to reduce the average operation time due to windup release. McCarthy doesn't try to play out of structure, but when it does happen, he's pretty consistent and positive, and he's more focused late in games and on third down. He seems confident and has the ability to take disrespect and digest it as competitive fodder…
Mock draft landing site
Where McCarthy lands is one of the biggest question marks heading into the first round. A number of teams around the top 10 could receive his services, including the New England Patriots (3 teams), New York Giants (6 teams), Minnesota Vikings (11 teams), and Denver. Includes the Broncos (12 teams) and Las Vegas Raiders. (13). The latter three teams could try to trade him to avoid being thoroughly beaten by one of the other teams.
ESPN's Mel Kiper and Field Yates predicted the Vikings would trade up and take him at No. 5, while NFL.com's Bucky Brooks simply predicted he would fall to the Vikings at No. 11. did.
Impact on fantasy football
Normally you'd try to avoid rookie QBs in redraft leagues, and unless you're in a deep league, I'd just wait and try to take McCarthy off the waiver wire if there's interest. Like all rookies, there will be a learning curve and there's a good chance he won't make a huge fantasy impact in year one. If he goes to a team like the Vikings, he could potentially start the season as a backup to a veteran like Sam Darnold.
McCarthy is a risky option in keeper and dynasty formats. He feels like a project that might take a few seasons to fully develop, and even then he might not reach near his ceiling. There should be more attractive QBs in the dynasty draft (Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye, Michael Penix Jr.) with more fantasy football upside than McCarthy.
