“J.J.’s confidence is sky high because he’s got a guy like Josh in the room with him,” O’Connell said. “I feel like Josh is the perfect coach to be an extension of me in so many ways and allow me to play my role with that position.”
Coaches are preaching patience with McCarthy, who was the youngest of six first-round quarterbacks drafted in 2024 and did not have a rookie season because of injury.
McCown is also not rushing his own development as a coach. He declined to pursue offensive coordinator opportunities this offseason to stay in Minnesota with talented coaches, top players and a young quarterback.
“Absolutely love that guy,” McCarthy said of McCown. “Like an older brother to me. … I feel like our relationship continues to grow every moment we spend with each other. You can’t take for granted all the lessons he’s been through, all the situations he’s had to overcome, the resiliency he has, like, it’s something really special.”
Quarterbacks coach Josh McCown speaks to the Vikings QBs during a training camp practice Aug. 7. (Carlos Gonzalez/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
McCown began coaching during his journeyman playing career.
In January 2010, after wrapping his second season with the Carolina Panthers, McCown walked into the office of a high school football coach in Waxhaw, N.C., a town just south of Charlotte.
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