There are several posts recently on social media regarding NFL rookie mini-camp and quarterback play. These videos show first-round quarterbacks from this year’s draft class struggling to complete easy throws.

Minnesota Vikings and former National Championship winner J.J. McCarthy has been the main culprit regarding these struggles and this negative stigma should be put into perspective.

JJ McCarthy🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/Ja6erKa527

— Jakub 🐻⬇️ (@JakubNFL) May 10, 2024

Football fans need to relax about these mini-camp wobbly throws and the different routes that are being run during the rookie camps. Here are several reasons why and how starting off rusty is normal for any athlete.

• Early Development (First time for learning the playbook, working with receivers, and new offensive line protections)
• Limited Reps (Building a rapport will take time)
• Rust & Conditioning (Rookies coming out of college may not have thrown a football in months)
• Lack of a Defense (There is no live tackling, rushing the quarterback, or anything to make these throws more difficult/ game like, which only enhance their growth)

The above video is getting a lot of heat on social media as it is just a simple fundamental throw by McCarthy to another coach who is standing still; however, has social media ever taken into consideration that he may have been trying a different throwing mechanic that his quarterback’s coach and team is testing out? A lot of times in the NFL the coaches try to fix different quarterback flaws and mechanics for better delivery of the football. McCarthy in the above clip clearly missed the mark but testing something out for the first time would warrant this delivery of the football.

This is just a thought I had as I watched the clip. It most likely could be completely wrong and just like anyone who has thrown a football before, sometimes you miss the target.

While I can keep speculating, Vikings fans do have the right to be a bit nervous after watching this clip as no one wants to see their professional quarterback who they just drafted throw a football like this… but… there are also clips like this one that show nice zip on the football.

Some JJ McCarthy content for your timeline. pic.twitter.com/lMrlbwIYlQ

— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) May 12, 2024

The accuracy could have been a bit better and more toward the outside of the intended receiver, but these are all things that can be easily fixed during training camp. This was McCarthy’s first time throwing an NFL football and trying to take the NFL playbook from inside his mind to the football field.

We are also not in the Vikings organization and we are not in the minds of coach Kevin O’Connell and his coaching staff. Where the football should be thrown may be different than what fans are mentioning on social media and we will never know the true answer to this. I’d like to also note that the coaching staff may recognize that McCarthy struggles with throwing the football to his left, and they are actively working on this by giving him more plays toward that side of the field.

While you are on social media watching your quarterback throw inaccurate or rough wobbly balls, just remember that they are human and not ever quarterback throws a perfect pass every single time.

These athletes are in the early stages of their NFL development and their progression and development from rookie mini-camp to the end of training camp should have a massive increase in growth. This growth is exactly what fans should want to see as we head into the regular season in just a few short months.