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J.J. McCarthy hasn't fully healed from the 

 that has kept him out of the past three games, still navigating the 

 of stress-testing the injury and ramping back up to speed with the Minnesota Vikings and their offense.

The question of whether McCarthy returns as the starting quarterback Sunday against Philadelphia or Carson Wentz remains at the helm went formally unanswered Wednesday by coach Kevin O’Connell, but the message this week about how much McCarthy has to work on mechanically has spoken rather loudly about the team's preference to carefully ease him in.

McCarthy, for his part, said in his first interview with reporters since his right ankle rolled underneath him at the end of a scramble while being tackled at the sideline in the second game of the season that he's not back to 100 percent yet.

He's still within the initial timetable for return, anywhere between two and six weeks, that he was given after the injury.

“It’s unfortunate and one of those really annoying injuries,” McCarthy said, “but I'm just continuing to work to get to 100 percent as fast as possible.”

O'Connell, who spent the better part of 

 working with his protege on basic passing mechanics that the 10th overall pick in the 2024 draft simply hasn't been afforded enough time to hone because of his injuries, said both McCarthy and Wentz would take turns with the first-team offense in practice.

“I think the biggest thing is just getting him back in uniform on grass, getting real live reps of pass rush and taking drops and applying some of the things that he’s worked really hard on,” O'Connell said. “I’m having a blast coaching him.”

If that sounds a bit like an offseason update, it's because McCarthy has practiced and played so little over the past year and a half since he was drafted that O'Connell, quarterbacks coach Josh McCown and the rest of the staff are still in that teaching mode in a lot of ways.

“Everyone in this position and at other positions and in other professions, they’re always working on perfecting that part of their craft, the fundamentals, the basics,” McCarthy said. “So it was just awesome to get back on the field and spin it but get that wisdom and advice from those guys.”

The Vikings at every turn have insisted they're not using the injury as a reason to give McCarthy more time to watch and learn from O'Connell, McCown and Wentz. Though they'll need to assess sooner than later if McCarthy is truly the franchise quarterback they want to commit to beyond the cap-friendly rookie contract, there's no point in evaluating his performance if he can't properly push off his right foot.

“This is a unique, real injury where sometimes the hardest part is that trust level of getting that final stage of game-like movements and feelings,” O'Connell said.

Wentz, who's on his sixth team in six seasons and in his 10th year in the league, shrugged off the notion of any awkwardness or uncertainty for him while McCarthy is in the in-between stage of being injured and being the starter.

“That’s the beauty of it, having done both roles in my career so far,” Wentz said. “I have what works for me and what gets me ready to play, and that’s what I’ll be doing.”

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J.J. McCarthy hasn’t fully healed from the high ankle sprain that has kept him out of the past three games. He's still navigating the final stage of stress-testing the injury and ramping back up to speed with the Minnesota Vikings and their offense.

Vikings sidestep starting QB question as McCarthy acknowledges his ankle is not fully healed

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