J.J. McCarthy’s upside is tantalizing. The question is how high it actually goes

J.J. McCarthy was behind center for Michigan’s runs to and through the College Football Playoff, putting him front and center during the college season as the Wolverines kept churning out wins.

They were powered by a classic Harbaugh-ized offense: pound the rock until the defense bursts or at least get to third-and-manageable and further into the depths of Michigan’s hyper-designed gameplan. This commitment to a certain style is not a surprise to anyone that has watched a Jim Harbaugh-coached team, but it makes McCarthy an enigma for NFL evaluators attempting to discern as much as possible from film that consisted of a dozen or so dropbacks, maybe, in a given game.

On that sample pack-sized collection of plays, McCarthy showed a great understanding of what Michigan was trying to accomplish, even on examples of him having to do nothing but hand the ball off after the snap. He often was given the reins to change plays based on defensive looks — Michigan had a field day on the ground against Penn State, when McCarthy attempted only eight passes but was often communicating and signaling play changes before the snap in difficult third down and backed-up situations.

McCarthy was officially listed at 202 pounds at Michigan, though he weighed in at 219 at the combine on Saturday, according to Yahoo Sports’ Charles Robinson. That could be significant in determining how successful he is at the NFL level. Before we get to that, let’s look at his game.

Where J.J. McCarthy is strong throwing the football

When asked to drop back, McCarthy shows good arm strength and the ability to throw on the move (he prefers to go to his right) and mitigate sacks with his pocket movement and athleticism, plus he also has the sheer willingness to fire the ball over the middle of the field.

Showing flashes of anticipation and plenty of zip to drive into tight spaces, McCarthy was more than comfortable working in the pocket, or extending for another half-second, to drive on in-breaking throws…


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Publish date : 2024-03-02 15:15:07

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