J.J. McCarthy made a resounding return as the Vikings’ starting quarterback today as Minnesota made timely plays on offense and used a physical defense to upset the Lions in Detroit, 27-24.
McCarthy, who had missed the previous five games with an ankle injury, threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score as the Vikings improved their season record to 4-4 against the defending NFC North Division champion Lions who entered the game as almost a double-digit favorite. The Lions had won five straight over Minnesota prior to today.
In the closing minutes of the fourth quarter McCarthy made a couple of his biggest plays. With less than two minutes to go and trying to protect a three-point lead, McCarthy scrambled for four yards on a busted first downplay. Then on third down and five, he threw a gutsy first down pass to Jalen Nailor that allowed the Vikings to run out the clock.
McCarthy, known for his meditation preparation on game day, entered Sunday with only two previous games of NFL experience. J.J. doubters were plentiful after his early season’s underwhelming performance but today the 22-year-old was commanding in the huddle and at the line of scrimmage while delivering strong arm throws and running with speed and athleticism in a game that may turn out to be a turning point in his career.
McCarthy guided an improved offense that finally had all its starting offensive linemen except center Ryan Kelly. They gave McCarthy time to throw and opened holes for revived performance by running back Aaron Jones who had 78 yards on nine carrier before leaving the game with an upper body injury.
The Vikings weren’t going to win the game, though, without a harassing defense that held the Lions hyped running game to 65 yards and bothered quarterback Jared Goff for four quarters. Goff entered the game with a 116.4 passer rating and 74.9 passing completion percentage in home games. Today he faced a blitz-focused defense that sacked him five times while holding him under his normal performance.
The Vikings were frequently more physical than the Lions led by linebacker Blake Cashman who had 11 tackles. It was Cashman who chased down Detroit running back David Montgomery and punched out the ball in a timely third quarter play. Minnesota recovered and ended a Detroit drive with Minnesota holding a 17-14 lead.
The Vikings took over at the Lions’ 35-yard line. McCarthy took the Vikings on a short drive that resulted in his nine-yard touchdown drive to put the Vikings ahead 24-14.
In the fourth quarter Levi Drake Rodriguez blocked a Detroit field goal attempt that could have narrowed the score to 24-20. The play was part of special teams contributions to the win.
Myles Price returned a kickoff 61-yards to set up the Vikings first score in the opening quarter that tied the game at 7-7. In the second half he would have had a 99-yard TD return if not for a holding penalty by Tavierre Thomas that negated the score.
The timing of the win couldn’t have been better for the Vikings and the NFC North Division standings. The division leading Packers lost to the Panthers and now have a record of 5-2-1. The Bears and Lions are both 5-3, and within reach of the Vikings with nine more games remaining on the schedule.
Medved: Tyson ‘Poised to Have Great Year for Us’
After exhibition game wins over North Dakota State and North Dakota at Williams Arena last month, new coach Niko Medved’s Golden Gophers open the regular season at home Monday night against Gardner-Webb. In those two exhibitions, Minnesota’s leading scorer was North Carolina transfer Cade Tyson with 28 and 24 points. Look for Tyson to make that a trend this fall and winter.
Tyson played sparingly at Carolina last season after he transferred from Belmont where he averaged 15 points in 61 career games. During the 2023-204 season at Belmont he was second in the nation in three-point field goal percentage at 46.5.
Tyson, a 6-foot-7 guard-forward, was one of the top transfers in the portal when he decided on Carolina. But he admitted to Sports Headliners recently that his confidence “definitely took a hit” with the Tar Heels. Not so far with the Gophers though, making 18 of 26 field goal attempts, including 10 of 15 three-pointers in the exhibition games.
“…He went to North Carolina and sometimes I think fit matters,” Medved told Sports Headliners. “Maybe it just wasn’t the right marriage for both parties. And you know he’s looking for another opportunity, and I think he’s a great fit for what we do.
“And he’s hungry, he’s got a chip on his shoulder. He’s a worker and…I think fans (already) have seen—you know, it’s early—kind of what he’s capable of doing. So, I think he’s poised to have a great year for us.”
How does Tyson fit with the Gophers? Medved likes players who can play multiple positions, and he labels Tyson a “sneaky good rebounder.” He also describes Tyson as “an exceptional rebounder” who moves well without the ball and has the ability to get to the basket and draw fouls.
Could he be the go-to player when the Gophers have to win late in games? Medved thinks so, but adds that his team is still figuring out roles. “I definitely know one thing. If he’s open, I feel like it’s going in.”
The Gophers beat out Iowa for Tyson who Medved said comes from “great stock.” His brother Hunter plays in the NBA for the Nuggets.
Isaac Asuma, unlike Tyson, has struggled with his shooting in the exhibition games. The sophomore point guard is 6 of 17 from the field including 2 of 8 on three-pointers.
Medved isn’t concerned. “He’s shot the cover off of it in practice. When you watch him every day in practice, and his mechanics, and his shooting, he really shoots it well.
“I just think it’s a small sample size. …He’s a young guy. He’s a sophomore. …He just needs to see a few go in in (during) the games and I think he can really take off. I think he’s going to be a terrific shooter, and we’ve seen that in practice.”
Medved inherits a program that two of the last three seasons finished last in the Big Ten standings. “…I think for this team the goal is when the season is over, I hope people are more excited about Gopher hoops than they are going into the season,” Medved said.
“I think there is some excitement around Gopher basketball. Whatever that looks like, we’ll see. But I like the way this team is working and we just gotta keep taking it one day at a time.”