Draft stock of Michigan football QB J.J. McCarthy is “soaring”

Unless you’re an Ohio State fan, you know that former Michigan football quarterback J.J. McCarthy killed it over the weekend at the 2024 NFL combine. McCarthy was “amazing” in his performance according to some of the experts who watched and there was no shortage of teams expressing interest.

The Broncos, Patriots, Seahawks, Commanders, Bears, Vikings, Raiders, Falcons, and Giants all met with the Michigan football standout during the combine and you can see why. If you need a quarterback, you have to look at McCarthy who has all the tools to be a franchise quarterback, plus his intangibles are off the charts.

J.J. McCarthy projected as a top-3 pick

It certainly impressed NFL evaluators that McCarthy was the only quarterback willing to compete at the combine. He didn’t run the 40-yard dash due to hamstring tightness, but even though he wasn’t 100 percent, he still went out and threw the ball and was impressive doing so. 

People scoffed when Jim Harbaugh predicted that McCarthy would be the No. 1 pick in the draft. But now, McCarthy’s draft stock is “soaring” and in the recent mock draft from CBS, he cracked the top three. The Michigan football legend, who was 27-1 as a starter in case you needed reminding, was projected to the New England Patriots.

Rivals fans will be shocked, although the truly shocking thing is how fans of Ohio State, Michigan State, and others seem to think McCarthy “sucks” or is “average” even though he did nothing but dunk on their teams over and over and over again. It’s an amazing phenomenon.

Yet, the people that know football, know that McCarthy is an elite prospect. Is he perfect? No. He lacks some experience and needs to be more consistent, especially with his footwork. That being said if I had the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft, I’d take the kid from Illinois and feel damn good about the future of my franchise.

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