Six sacks, two picks, three fumbles: Falcons defense crushes McCarthy and Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings quarterback threw two interceptions, fumbled three times, and lost one of those fumbles in a rough outing against Atlanta.
The Atlanta Falcons’ defense never gave J.J. McCarthy a breather, as the Minnesota Vikings were overpowered 22-6 in Sunday’s matchup, which saw seven field goals and one late touchdown.
It was a far cry from McCarthy’s debut last week against the Bears, where he led the Vikings back from an 11-point fourth quarter deficit, throwing two touchdowns and running for a third to clinch the game 27-24.
That debut, remember, came after McCarthy missed the entirety of his rookie season after tearing the meniscus in his right knee in a preseason game against the Raiders. Last night he came back to earth with a bump.
In fact, this was his first defeat as starting QB in 988 days, which came back on 31 December, 2022 against TCU in the Fiesta Bowl.
But against the Vikings he finished without a touchdown, threw two interceptions, and fumbleed three times—losing one of them. In total he completed just 11 of 21 passes for 158 yards, a sharp drop-off from his showing the week before.
The Falcons punished him relentlessly. They sacked him six times and hit him 11 in total. Brandon Dorlus and Zach Harrison did the most damage, recording 1.5 sacks each, with Harrison forcing a strip-sack in the fourth quarter.
McCarthy’s interceptions proved especially costly, stalling promising drives. The first came in the second quarter on a short pass to Jalen Nailor that Billy Bowman picked off.
His second turnover was on a deep ball—a 33-yard attempt intended for Justin Jefferson. Instead, rookie Xavier Watts came down with it, giving the Falcons security late in the game.
A daunting road ahead for McCarthy
The Vikings face the Cincinnati Bengals next, and that’s a daunting prospect. The AFC North squad just lost quarterback Joe Burrow to a foot injury that will sideline him for at least three months, meaning Cincinnati will lean heavily on its defense. That could spell more trouble for McCarthy.
After that, the Vikings head overseas to Ireland to face the Pittsburgh Steelers at Corke Park. Pittsburgh is notorious for its relentless pass rush, and with T.J. Watt still searching for his first sack of the year, McCarthy likely won’t get much relief there either.
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