J.J. McCarthy sparks Vikings’ 27-24 comeback in NFL debut vs. Bears

From zero NFL snaps to a primetime comeback in 15 minutes—that was the arc of J.J. McCarthy’s first night as a pro. The Minnesota Vikings rookie, making his long-delayed debut after a year rehabbing a torn meniscus, rallied his team from an 11-point deficit to beat the Chicago Bears 27-24 on Monday Night Football at Soldier Field.

The scene fit the moment. A national audience. A division rival. A franchise waiting on an answer at quarterback. McCarthy, drafted 10th overall after leading Michigan to the 2023 national championship over Washington, had spent his entire first NFL season on the sideline. The anticipation inside the Vikings’ building and across their fan base had been building for months. By the end of the fourth quarter, the wait felt worth it.

The night did not start like a breakthrough. Chicago’s defense got hands on throws, muddied his reads, and made him pay for one mistake in the worst way. Bears cornerback Nahshon Wright jumped a route and raced 74 yards the other way for a pick-six, turning a tight game into a 17-6 Chicago lead in the third quarter. The stadium roared. The rookie looked, for a moment, like a rookie.

At halftime, Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell went straight to his quarterback. You are going to bring us back to win this game, he told McCarthy. It was part encouragement, part challenge—and exactly the call the Vikings had made when they drafted him in the first place.

Fourth-quarter flip: how McCarthy won it

Everything changed in the final 15 minutes. McCarthy loosened up, sped up his processing, and started ripping the ball into windows, especially on early downs. The turning point came on a crisp 13-yard touchdown to Justin Jefferson, a timing throw that hit in stride. Minnesota missed the two-point try, but the confidence switch had flipped.

On the next chance, the Vikings needed only three plays to go ahead. McCarthy sold the play-action, held the safety, and fired a 27-yard strike to Aaron Jones for a touchdown. This time, the conversion worked—McCarthy hit Adam Thielen for two and a 20-17 lead with 9:46 to play, and suddenly the game tilted toward purple.

Chicago answered to keep it tight, but McCarthy had one more punch. On a red-zone keeper, he tucked the ball, cut off his right tackle, and powered in for a rushing score that stretched Minnesota’s advantage. It was the kind of call O’Connell makes when he trusts his quarterback to protect himself and finish the run. The score gave the Vikings enough breathing room to withstand the last Bears push and close out a three-point win.

The numbers tell only part of it. The feel of the final quarter—tempo, command, the change in body language—told the rest. McCarthy started layering throws to the sideline, then took what Chicago gave him underneath. He kept his eyes downfield on the move and made a few subtle pocket slides that bought just enough time for routes to develop. Minnesota’s protection also cleaned up, and the quick game helped the line mute the Bears’ pass rush late.

O’Connell praised the poise he saw from the first snap, but he made a point to credit the collective belief around the rookie. The offense huddled tighter. The sideline energy changed. From Jefferson demanding the ball to Jones finishing runs, the Vikings’ veterans carried their quarterback while he found his bearings—then he rewarded them by finishing the job.

This was not a one-man show. Minnesota’s defense delivered two crucial stands in the fourth quarter, including a third-down stop when Chicago tried to pick on the middle of the field. Special teams flipped field position once, and that mattered in a one-score game. But the night will be remembered for the quarterback who took control when it mattered most.

By the final kneel-down, McCarthy had checked off a lot of boxes in one night: a response to a bad mistake, two fourth-quarter touchdown passes, a bruising rushing score, and the composure to manage the clock. For a player who hadn’t taken a live NFL snap until this game, it looked like the blueprint Minnesota imagined when it invested a top-10 pick in him.

What this debut means for the Vikings and the Bears

For Minnesota, this was more than a Week 1 win. It was a proof-of-concept. O’Connell’s offense is designed to be quarterback-friendly when the QB is decisive, accurate, and comfortable changing gears at the line. That showed late. The play sheet opened up. Motion and formations stressed Chicago in the flats. Shot plays to Jefferson loosened the box for Jones. When the Vikings needed a conversion, they didn’t hide the rookie—they put the ball in his hands.

The supporting cast matters here. Jefferson’s touchdown and chain-moving routes gave McCarthy a reliable first read when he needed it most. Jones’ balance—running through contact, then exploding up the seam on the go-ahead score—allowed Minnesota to stay balanced and avoid obvious passing downs. Thielen’s two-point grab underscored how the Vikings leaned on veteran savvy in critical moments. The trust flows both ways: receivers running through windows on time because they know the ball will arrive; a quarterback throwing on time because he knows his guys will be there.

There’s also the injury chapter. Missing an entire rookie season with a knee injury is a mental grind just as much as physical. The Vikings kept McCarthy’s workload measured through the spring and summer, then let him take the reins when it counted. Monday showed he can move well enough to threaten the edge and protect himself. He did not look limited, and he avoided the kind of contact that shortens seasons for young quarterbacks.

Expect the film to reveal plenty to fix. The pick-six came from a defender reading his eyes and breaking on a throw that arrived late and inside. A few early snaps had him locking onto his first read. He also left yards on the field by bailing a tick early from clean pockets. The difference after halftime was eye placement and rhythm. The ball came out on time, and the footwork matched the concepts. That level of adjustment is what coaches want to see from a young starter.

On the other sideline, Chicago walks away frustrated but not empty-handed. In Ben Johnson’s first game as head coach, the Bears had a plan to clutter McCarthy’s looks early and found points off defense. Rookie quarterback Caleb Williams delivered his first NFL rushing touchdown and tossed another score, giving the crowd sparks in a building that feeds off momentum. He extended plays, flashed arm talent, and showed the competitive edge that made him a top pick.

The Bears’ problem was closing. A couple of stalled drives in the fourth quarter flipped the game script. Protection wobbled late, and the run game lost efficiency when Minnesota tightened run fits. Defensively, Chicago mixed coverages well early but paid for single coverage on the perimeter after the Vikings adjusted. That is the thin margin on Mondays—one blown leverage here, one missed tackle there, and the tenor of a game changes in three snaps.

Zoom out, and the opener gave us a high-variance showcase for two quarterbacks from the same draft class. Williams looked dangerous and capable of the spectacular. McCarthy looked steady when it mattered and took the profit plays that win in the fourth quarter. Both teams will spend the week trimming the rough edges on tape—Chicago working on late-game execution and Minnesota cleaning up the turnovers and early stagnation.

There will be no shortage of noise around McCarthy now. That is the tax for starring on a national stage in your first outing. The Vikings can temper it by keeping the plan simple: lean on the run-pass blend, let Jefferson dictate coverages, and give the rookie defined answers on third down. Mix in designed movement, because he throws well on the run and it protects the pocket. Most of all, keep the fourth-quarter composure that turned a double-digit hole into a season-opening win.

For the Bears, there is a foundation to build on. Williams has obvious chemistry with his playmakers, and Johnson’s offense created a handful of clean looks that should translate week to week. Cleaning up situational football—red-zone precision, two-minute management, late-down protection—will decide whether good flashes become wins.

And then there’s the human part of Monday night. The roar after the pick-six. The hush after the Jefferson score. The wave of noise that followed McCarthy’s go-ahead strike and then his sprint into the end zone. On opening night, in a rivalry game, the rookie rode it all and learned how to steady it. The Vikings needed that. Their locker room needed that. The fan base, waiting a year to see what this draft bet could be, needed that too.

One game does not define a career. But it can set a tone. McCarthy’s tone was grit, adjustment, and a calm finish under pressure. In a league that judges quarterbacks on those exact traits, that is a strong way to start.