Vikings roster: When will J.J. McCarthy, Khyree Jackson start? - ESPN

EAGAN, Minn. — The Minnesota Vikings' search for a new quarterback consumed much of their energy, and all of the public attention around them, for the first four months of the NFL offseason. Behind the scenes, of course, the Vikings were working on more than simply the transition from Kirk Cousins to a combination of Sam Darnold and rookie J.J. McCarthy.

They swapped out their starting running back, releasing Alexander Mattison and signing Aaron Jones. They remade their defensive front by signing free agent edge players Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel, drafting Dallas Turner at No. 17 overall and locking into a new pair of inside linebackers with free agent Blake Cashman and rising star Ivan Pace Jr. They even made plans to field a new kicker after three seasons with Greg Joseph.

So it was understandable to see coach Kevin O'Connell flash a genuine smile on the first day of rookie minicamp earlier this month, knowing it was time to move from the planning stage to evaluation mode.

«It's really exciting,» he said, «to see the whole process kind of come to a head and see these guys wearing purple out here and starting to begin the process of their growth and their journey.»

As the Vikings move through a month's worth of OTAs and minicamps until mid-June, let's take a step back and consider five observations of their roster:

The public anticipation for McCarthy is understandable. Top-10 picks usually get on the field quickly, and nothing about Darnold's playing history suggests he should be handed a starting job.

However, behind the scenes, Vikings have uttered different versions of the same thought: They signed Darnold for a reason.

Expect O'Connell to use the same approach with Darnold as he did upon inheriting