Vikings' Kevin O'Connell gives injury update on J.J. McCarthy

Vikings' Kevin O'Connell gives injury update on J.J. McCarthy originally appeared on The Sporting News

The Minnesota Vikings survived one week without starting quarterback J.J. McCarthy. Carson Wentz stepped in and performed well as the Vikings dominated the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 3, cruising to a 48-10 victory at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Wentz completed 14 of 20 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns in the win. Moreover, unlike Jake Browning, who struggled when replacing the sidelined Joe Burrow, Wentz handled the role flawlessly and avoided costly mistakes.

The Vikings' veteran quarterback was able to avoid costly mistakes, unlike the Bengals, who had three fumbles and allowed four sacks in a disastrous performance.

What's the latest on Vikings' J.J. McCarthy

While most of the Vikings team practiced Friday at the Sport Ireland campus, McCarthy was on a side field with a smaller group as he continued rehab on a high right ankle sprain.

It was the second straight week J.J. McCarthy sat out of practice following his Sept. 14 injury, and coach Kevin O'Connell shared an update on the young quarterback.

"First things first, we wanted to get him here through the flight and see how he did with that flight," O'Connell said (h/t Kevin Seifert of ESPN).

"And as we go through the weekend, and then on our way in making the trip to London, he will truly be day to day and we'll see where he is at [and] if we can start ramping up his workload and at least getting him involved maybe on a limited basis, and allow us to get him on the grass and work some technique and fundamentals, and start building that back up."

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Furthermore, O'Connell made it clear that McCarthy won't see the field until his ankle is completely recovered. The Vikings aren't taking any gamble with the Michigan product, as the team probably doesn't want him dealing with any lingering injury.

"I really meant it the other day when I said I want him to get 100 percent healthy," O'Connell said. "I think it's a part of his game to be able to move. I think he moves a lot better than people give him credit for, especially when he is healthy. And then it also has an application to his ability to be as accurate as he can possibly be, being that it's his plant foot.

"... It's not going to be okay to just be close because then you risk obviously a setback or him taking more reps when he's not truly 100 percent. As we look forward to getting him back in there."