Detroit Lions Get Uplifting News Ahead Week 9
The Detroit Lions are on a much-deserved bye week, and they’d be wise to use the time to rest and reflect on their promising start to the season. The week off will also give the team’s injured secondary time to rejuvenate, even though the Lions were still able to pull off a strong and definitive win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, October 19, 24-9, despite the injured secondary.
Even though the Lions have a week off, it’s not too early to start thinking about their next opponent, the Minnesota Vikings. It’s been an up-and-down season for the Viks, and the team is heading into their Week 8 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers with a 3-3 record. One of the biggest issues for the Vikings this season has been their quarterback position. After drafting Michigan product J.J. McCarthy in the 2024 NFL draft, McCarthy had to sit out the entire 2024-25 season due to injury. He returned this season but was injured again relatively quickly, so the team has been relying on Carson Wentz.
So, what are the chances McCarthy will be healthy enough to play against the Lions? The answer to that question will help determine the result of that game.
J.J. McCarthy’s Status Going Into Detroit Lions Game
According to the NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell commented on Tuesday, October 21, that McCarthy, who’s dealing with an ankle injury, was put through an on-field workout but it’s there yet. So, he’s not expected to play in the team’s Thursday, October 23, game against the Los Angeles Chargers for Week 8.
But, O’Connell commented that if the Vikings were playing on Sunday instead of Thursday, McCarthy may be healthy enough to play, implying that he would be ready to go for the Week 9 game against the Detroit Lions.
So, is it good or bad news that McCarthy might be available to take on the Lions? Colby Colwell of Detroit Jock City thinks it’s good news. According to the NFL expert and analyst, it’s not just good news, it’s “great news,” based on McCarthy’s early showing on the field.
“For starters, McCarthy has two TDs, three interceptions, and a dismal 58.5% completion rate through two NFL appearances, so that has to give the Lions some confidence already,” he notes in the Wednesday, October 22 piece. “Detroit was missing four starters in the defensive backfield on Monday night and still held the Buccaneers offense to 58 total yards in the first half, and got some key contributions from players like cornerback Arthur Maulet, who had a breakout performance in the win with an interception.”
Carson Wentz vs. J.J. McCarthy to Take on the Detroit Lions
Wentz hasn’t had the most stellar season, though. According to the statistics from ESPN and Pro Football Reference, he’s clocked five touchdown and four interceptions with a completion percentage of 66.9% and passing yards of 1,072.
So, it’s a mixed bag when it comes to which quarterback will be better to take on the Lions. The most important matter, really, is that the Lions’ defense and secondary gets healthier, and then they’ll be unstoppable no matter who they’re up against.
Minnesota Vikings Secure Diontae Johnson to Fill WR Void After Addison Suspension
The Minnesota Vikings are hunting the NFL landscape for a starting-caliber wide receiver to fill in for Jordan Addison, who will miss the first three games of the season due to a suspension from the league for off-field misconduct.
Jalen Nailor, Minnesota’s WR3 entering training camp, is week-to-week with a hand injury and remains questionable for the team’s Week 1 opener at Soldier Field against the Chicago Bears on Monday night, September 8.
The circumstances mean that second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who will take his first regular-season snap as a professional less than two weeks from now, could be down two of his top three targets in the receivers room come opening night. It helps that the one he’s likely to have at his disposal is Justin Jefferson, perhaps the best pass-catcher in the sport, but Jefferson has also missed extensive preseason work due to a hamstring injury.
Thus, Minnesota’s pursuit of a reunion trade with the Carolina Panthers that would bring Adam Thielen back to his hometown team, as well as other calls around the league to gauge the availability of potential difference-makers in the pass game.
However, as cutdown day arrived a handful of options began popping up across the league. One such opportunity involves former Pro Bowler (2021) and former second-team All Pro (2019) Diontae Johnson, whom the Cleveland Browns released on Tuesday, August 26.
Diontae Johnson Has Been Trending Downward Over Past 3 NFL Seasons
Should Minnesota add Johnson, it wouldn’t really be fair to call him a steal regardless of the nominal price the Vikings would likely have to pay to sign him. The Browns, for instance, inked Johnson to a one-year contract worth $1.17 million that included zero guaranteed money before parting ways with the wideout Tuesday
The reason Johnson’s value has dipped so significantly is because his production began to inexplicably crater following a career year in 2021, during which he tallied 107 catches for 1,161 yards and eight TDs as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers. He regressed in each of the two seasons following that campaign both in terms of catches and receiving yards, and scored zero touchdowns in the 2022 season.
That said, Johnson was still a starting-caliber wideout in 2022 and 2023, averaging nearly 70 catches and almost 800 yards receiving on the nose across those two years. But then things went off the rails for the receiver in 2024.
Johnson played for three different franchises last year: the Panthers (seven games), Baltimore Ravens (four games) and Houston Texans (one game). He produced totals of 33 receptions for 375 yards and three TDs in easily the worst season of his career.
Diontae Johnson Represents Low-Risk, High-Upside Play for Vikings at Wide Receiver
At 29 years old, Johnson is entering his seventh NFL season and just failed to hang on with the Browns through cutdown day — arguably the worst franchise in the league, with inarguably one of the least experienced and least talented groups of pass-catchers.
None of this sounds like a ringing endorsement for a player with regards to any team, particularly one like Minnesota that won 14 games last season, has a young quarterback who is about to become a starter for the first time and holds legitimate Super Bowl aspirations.
However, there is the Kevin O’Connell factor to consider, which combined with the team culture the new regime has built over the past three years could provide a player like Johnson with obvious talent a chance to rehabilitate his career in a meaningful way.
As a member of the Vikings, Johnson would have the chance to start the season as high as WR2 depending on Nailor’s health and how that position battle played out.
Even upon Addison’s return, Johnson would be in the mix for WR3 and real work in an offense that could be among the league’s best yet again in 2025 if McCarthy proves himself even an average/slightly-above-average quarterback.
Minnesota’s risk in signing Johnson would be low, and the upside arguably significant. Not to mention, the team wouldn’t have to fork over a draft asset to land some different receiver whose 2024 campaign was no better (and perhaps meaningfully less productive) than any of Johnson’s first five years in the league between 2019-23.
