The Vikings\u2019 passing game has arguably been the worst in the sport this year when McCarthy is under center. According to TruMedia, the only quarterback (minimum 50 dropbacks) with a lower mark than McCarthy\u2019s -0.37 expected points added per dropback is Ravens backup Cooper Rush (-0.41). Among the 41 quarterbacks with at least 50 dropbacks this season, McCarthy ranks 40th in expected points added per dropback. Since 2021, there have been 103 players to take at least 50 dropbacks. McCarthy ranks 99th in expected points added per dropback among that sample, with only Brandon Allen (-0.37), Dorian Thompson-Robinson (-0.40), Mike Glennon (-0.40) and Anthony Brown (-0.44) generating less value.<\/p>\n
Even within the Vikings\u2019 win over the Lions, they weren\u2019t actually able to move the ball with any consistency. They started well on their first two drives where McCarthy completed 5 of 7 passes for 68 yards and two touchdowns as the Vikings did well on their scripted drives. For the remainder of the game, they really struggled to generate any sort of production in the passing game. The next 24 dropbacks that carried them through the end of the game gained 48 net passing yards. McCarthy was able to pick up a key scramble for nine yards, bringing the total to 57 yards over 24 dropbacks across the final three quarters. That\u2019s 2.4 yards per dropback to go along with being sacked five times, which is 21.5% of this sample and 16.7% of the entire game.<\/p>\n
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That level of production isn\u2019t going to cut it, and it was in line with how McCarthy has generally looked when he\u2019s played this season. His sack rate sits at 17.5%, which is by far the worst number in the league and significantly higher than Carson Wentz\u2019s alarmingly high mark of 10.8% during his own starts for the Vikings this season. There are quarterbacks like Drake Maye and Lamar Jackson who play with high sack rates as well, but they consistently generate big plays in the passing game to mitigate the impact of those sacks. That isn\u2019t happening here. This has largely just been a net negative.<\/p>\n
The good thing here is that the Vikings are still winning these games. Their defense, coaching staff and supporting cast around McCarthy set a high floor, as they showed for the majority of last season before imploding in the final couple weeks. It\u2019s difficult to win these games with this little production from the offense, but Brian Flores and his defense had the Lions in a chokehold in high-leverage moments, and a huge field goal block set up more points for the offense. If they can just get anything from the passing game moving forward they\u2019ll be formidable in January, even if they might not be good enough to win the Super Bowl.<\/p>\n
The fear here is that McCarthy\u2019s baseline play right now might be so low that waiting for him to get to starter-quality level might not match a realistic timeline for a team that\u2019s ready to win now. However, the glass-half-full view is that it really would be difficult to be worse than this without suffering a serious injury, considering how often he takes hits while trying to diagnose the defense. He can only go up from here, because he won\u2019t be on the field very long if he doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
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McCarthy made a great throw to seal the win for the Vikings,<\/a> but giving him credit for the win or framing this performance as an overall positive is creating an expectation that he hasn\u2019t even met yet. Just because he isn\u2019t good now doesn\u2019t mean he can\u2019t be in the future, but there isn\u2019t anything at this point to suggest it will happen. Don\u2019t forget all the other players on the field exist!<\/p>\n The Perseverance Award: Cam Ward<\/p>\n Boy. This has been a painful start for Cam Ward and the Titans. Head coach Brian Callahan was fired<\/a> and they boast the worst overall offense in the league up to this point.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Ward has had some real moments of brilliance this season, showing off the traits that made him the no-brainer first overall pick, but there\u2019s also been too many boneheaded moments leading to drive-killing sacks or turnovers. The supporting cast is still a major work in progress and the Titans are a few strong offseasons away from being a threat, which seems like a reasonable timeline \u2014 to everyone except Cam Ward himself.<\/p>\n It has not been an easy rookie season for Titans quarterback Cam Ward. (Photo by Ian Maule\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n (Ian Maule via Getty Images)<\/p>\n Ward has taken this season incredibly hard, often denigrating his own performance and briefly challenging a reporter<\/a> on his play call knowledge during a media conference. The passion Ward has for the game can’t be questioned given the strife and anguish that he\u2019s shown everyone over the course of this season. The Titans might be starting the Ward era off on a bad foot, but it really has been refreshing to hear a quarterback speak so honestly and directly about how they and their team are performing. When Ward said \u201cwe ass\u201d<\/a> after a loss to the Texans, it was a little shocking, given the answers that are normally delivered in postgame media conferences, but it certainly was not a lie.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n This team is terrible, they\u2019re playing terrible football and there\u2019s no point in running from that if they want to have the ability to power through this. Ward\u2019s willingness to grapple with the hard truth of his reality makes him worthy of the Perseverance Award, a very real award that has long existed. The\u00a0next step is to stop making the silliest turnovers<\/a> mankind has ever seen.<\/p>\n The Supersim Award: Kevin Stefanski<\/p>\n The Supersim award is a new award based off a concept in EA Sports\u2019 Madden franchise that lets players skip, or simulate, specific plays in a game based on how they want to play. If you want to play offense only, defense only, high leverage situations \u2014 your choosing.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n This year, Kevin Stefanski wins the Supersim award because he is absolutely done with the Browns offense this year. Stefanski, who is legitimately one of the best head coaches in the league and a deserving two-time Coach of the Year, passed the sticks to offensive coordinator Tommy Rees<\/a> to call plays for the rest of the season. It\u2019s the second year in a row he\u2019s handed off play-calling duties.<\/p>\n![\"It](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/b3064440-ac32-11f0-9fef-d2a68a026e5d.jpeg\"\/)
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