JJ McCarthy PFF’s top-graded QB on play action passes

2022 was JJ McCarthy’s first season as the starting quarterback for Michigan Football. After Cade McNamara lost the starting job in week one, JJ McCarthy took his chance and never backed down.

Since then, he had his highs and lows but ultimately proved himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the NCAA. He became a leader, a stellar quarterback, and it was only his first year running this offense. With the massive improvement and growth throughout the season, JJ McCarthy ended up being the highest graded quarterback off of play-action with a 92.9 ranking (Per PFF).

Highest graded QB on play action passes last season:

〽️ J.J. McCarthy: 92.9 pic.twitter.com/O915nSkBda

— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 15, 2023

JJ McCarthy being the highest graded quarterback off of play-action in his first year as a starter is impressive. He is likely to grow and get better from here especially going into next season.

When Michigan uses play action, JJ McCarthy is 55/80 for 1,111 passing yards with nine touchdowns and only one interception.

Why was play-action so successful for JJ McCarthy and the Wolverines? 

As we all know, Michigan heavily relied on the run game for much of the season. Early on, with how dominant Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards were, they did not need to throw the ball much.

Opposing teams made their game plan to stop the run and avoid breakout runs from either Michigan running back. Michigan football took that and used it to their advantage.

JJ McCarthy usually handed the ball off to the running back; however with that play action pass, he would fake it. Instead, McCarthy would throw it to a wide open receiver, the complete opposite of what the defenses was expecting.

This is expected to continue into next season, especially in the non-conference games. While we expect JJ to throw the ball much more often, he will not need to pass nearly as much mostly in the first few games. JJ McCarthy will have more time to perfect the play action, fool the defenses, and further improve it going into 2023.