JJ McCarthy
Position: QB – Projected: 1st Round
History & Measurables
Born: Jan. 20th, 2003 – La Grange Park, IL
High School: Nazareth Academy, IGM Academy (2020)
College: Michigan
Height: 6’2″ Weight: 219 lbs
Traits & Characteristics
The Good
- Athletic
- Velocity on Throws
- Pocket Prescence
- Improvisation
- Hit Tight Window Throws
The Bad
- Decision Making
- Throw Across Body
- Reps Throwing the Ball
Advanced Analytics Notes
- 20 Big-Time Throws in 2023 (T-27th in FBS)
- 20 Drops in 2023 (T-37th in FBS)
- 18 scrambles in 2023 (84th in FBS)
- 160 first downs in 2023 (21st in FBS)
- 2,991 passing yards in 2023 (35th in FBS)
- 87.3 PFF passing grade (12th in FBS)
Film Notes and Highlights
JJ McCarthy is a hard evaluation. Before 2022, he had a shoulder injury and I think that limited his arm strength in his second year. It was also his first year as a starting quarterback, and I thought he pressed a lot. You started to see some of his ability against Ohio State in 2022 and against TCU you saw growing pains.
In 2023, I think you saw his velocity come back. I also saw him take the easy throws more often. On throws 20 or more yards he improved from 39% to a 54% completion percentage. There is still room for improvement but I think he started using more touch. McCarthy is athletic and able to use his legs, but what I liked in 2023 was he used scrambling more to wait for open receivers. He is very accurate throwing on the run but when he gets outside he does tend to throw across his body. That will be a no-no at the next level.
JJ McCarthy can make tight window throws and has good feet most of the time. He can be inconsistent on accuracy and that will need to be fixed. The velocity on his throws is very good and he can vary his arm angles. McCarthy is a gunslinger, and at times I think Michigan tried to limit that. I think there are a lot of skills there to be a good NFL starter but I also agree he is situation dependent for his ceiling. – Brandon Haye
(Games Watched: vs Nebraska 2023, vs Ohio St 2023, vs Alabama 2023, vs Penn St 2022, vs Iowa 2022, vs TCU 2022)
It blows my mind that some are still saying that JJ McCarthy just didn't throw it enough in college. There are a handful of starters in the NFL right now who cannot do this. pic.twitter.com/bV9YnQ9Cwt
— Brandon Brown (@BSB_Wolverine) April 11, 2024
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Sheldon Hand
Sheldon Hand is an elementary school teacher. He started writing in 2019, and started working with The League Winners in 2021. He has been playing fantasy football for fifteen years, got into dynasty seven years ago and have become a bit obsessed.