The former Minnesota Vikings quarterback discusses his former team’s Super Bowl chances, Tua Tagovailoa’s future in Miami and his favourite QB in the NFL.
Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Daunte Culpepper believes JJ McCarthy could be among the top passers in the NFL this season, and even lead the lead in touchdowns.
McCarthy was drafted by Minnesota in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft but missed his entire rookie year through injury. After the Vikings went 14-3 but lost in the Wild Card round, they allowed quarterback Sam Darnold to leave in free agency and will start McCarthy this season.
Culpepper spent time at the Vikings’ training camp this summer and expects a big season ahead for his former team, who are / in the NFL betting to win Super Bowl LX.
In our exclusive interview, Culpepper also discusses Tua Tagovailoa’s future with the Miami Dolphins, why Jared Goff is underrated and who he believes is the best quarterback in the NFL.
The Minnesota Vikings surprised a lot of people in 2024, going 14-3 and making the playoffs – what impressed you most about their season?
I was very impressed with last season because I know how hard it is to win in the NFL week in and week out, and for the Vikings to be able to put a string of wins together like they did and to beat the teams that they did throughout the year, it’s really impressive. You know what type of team they were, how great they were and how close they were to greatness. So I’m excited about this year and I think the team’s even better.
You were at the team facility recently and spent time with JJ McCarthy. What does it say about McCarthy’s potential that the Vikings trusted him as the starter and let Sam Darnold leave?
It says a lot about what the Vikings as an organization see in JJ. For one, they drafted him high and they’ve done their homework on him. I feel the same about JJ. I think he’s a great quarterback. I don’t think he gets enough credit athletically, based on the offense that he played in at Michigan. I got a chance to be around him for about three weeks last month and I’ll tell you I was blown away with his accuracy, his ball placement and just the zip he has on his passes. I was very impressed, and his footwork is very, very good. So he’s primed to have a great year and I’m pulling for him.
What did you see in JJ’s personality and how he interacts with his teammates?
In the time I was around him, I noticed that he has that ‘it factor’ as a leader. He’s well respected, because he’s earned the respect of his teammates through the hard work and dedication that he’s put into getting himself ready.
They see it, and it’s contagious when your quarterback is that way. He’s always positive but he’s always real, and you’ve got to have those tough conversations with your teammates if needed.
Where do you think McCarthy would have been selected among the quarterbacks in this year’s NFL Draft?
Definitely at the top. He’d be one or two, for sure. There are a lot of variables in that, but just looking at his skill level and what I saw in the last three weeks, if I was an insider doing a lot of research on him and evaluating him, I would definitely put him at the top if he was coming out this year.
You played with one of the great NFL wide receivers in Randy Moss. How does he compare to Justin Jefferson?
Honestly, I mean Randy is a special football player and an athlete, and Justin is a similar type of guy based on the numbers he’s put up.
Randy’s just one of the most gifted athletes I’ve ever seen, as far as just being able to run and jump and make plays. JJ is very gifted as well, and he’s early in his career, but if he continues at the pace he’s going, he’s going to be in the same conversations as Randy Moss.
I wouldn’t say JJ is as just physically gifted as Randy, he has the same playmaking ability. I’m excited to watch JJ do his thing. They’re both phenomenal players and when it’s all said and done, if he stays healthy and continues on the path he’s on, he will be in the talks of some of the greatest receivers ever to play the game.
How helpful is it as a young quarterback to have an elite receiver on your team?
It’s great to have a top player in your team that expects to go out and do great things, and it gives you confidence as a quarterback. The more you have success, the more confidence you get as a quarterback, so I I think it’s absolutely wonderful that JJ McCarthy has weapons around him like Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, and the the offensive line, the running backs and the tight end. He has a full boat load of talent around him and I think that just gives him more of an opportunity to be who he is, and that’s a great quarterback.
Do you feel like the Vikings are poised to go under the radar and surprise people again this year?
Yes, and that’s not a bad position to be in, in my mind, because you kind of want to sneak up on people sometimes. When they know what to expect, they can prepare for you, but I think that if the Vikings just take it one week at a time like they did last year and just try to be the best they can be each week, if we stay healthy as a team, we’re going to surprise a lot of people again. What I saw up there last month, the team is primed and they look good. I know the games haven’t started and I understand that, but based on what I saw, I mean they were firing on all cylinders and they have what it takes to be a great team.
Unfortunately JJ got hurt his rookie year, but it made him hungrier and I saw that in his eyes. I’m excited about this year and I think they’re going to be the top team in that division.
It wouldn’t surprise me if JJ leads the league in passing. If he doesn’t lead the league in touchdowns, he’ll be right there at the top because I’m telling you, they’re gonna surprise people and that defense is solid, and with our running game, it’s just going to go hand in hand.
Sam Darnold had a great season for the Vikings but then it just fell apart at the end. Why do you think he struggled late in the season and what are your expectations of him with the Seattle Seahawks?
There are a lot of different things that could go wrong in the NFL, but that doesn’t diminish what he did in the regular season. The playoffs is a whole new season. Once the playoffs start, everybody’s record is 0-0. So I think the Vikings had some injuries late in the year and I think that hurt as well.
I haven’t broken the film down on Sam Darnold, but remembering the game, I think we were put in some situations where he had to make a play, and he just wasn’t able to make the play. When they got into the playoffs and late in the year, defenses were like: “you know what, we’re going to try to stop everything that the Vikings usually do and we’re going to make the quarterback beat us. Make him make some great throws.”
For that game, unfortunately, he just wasn’t able to do it. Now do I think he has the ability? Yes, he does. He’s been in the league a while, he’s shown that.
The whole saying is when you’re afforded the opportunity to make a play, you’ve got to make the play. That’s what great players do. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to do it, but I still think he’s a valuable quarterback in the league and I think in Seattle he’ll have opportunity to make those plays for them this year. I look forward to him redeeming himself and putting his best foot forward in Seattle.
You left Minnesota and became the starter in Miami. How difficult is it to step into a new locker room and immediately become ‘the guy’ as the starting quarterback?
For me personally, it wasn’t difficult. That team was a veteran team. I knew a lot of the players, and as soon as the trade happened and I got there, what you’ve got to do as a quarterback is show and tell. You’ve got to show guys that you’re willing to put in the effort, and the work, and the sacrifice to be good. I was there every day working out with the guys, putting in the work together as a team, trying to build that camaraderie, the types of friendships that it takes because in the NFL, in my experience, you’ve got to have that cohesive unit, that brotherhood. We built that in Miami.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t physically healthy enough to be the player I wanted to be. But from the time I got there, until the season started and I had to ultimately have another surgery that ended my season, I earned the respect of everybody and that’s what you’ve got to be willing to do.
Respect isn’t given, it’s earned, and every quarterback has to go through and figure out their way in. For me, it wasn’t hard. It was a natural thing. I had been playing quarterback since eighth grade and it was the same even in Little League, high school and college. You’ve got to be able to put forth the effort, show the guys who you are and show them that you’re serious about being the best you can be. As a leader, and you do that by making plays and also putting in the work.
The Dolphins had a disappointing year by their standards in 2024. If they don’t make the playoffs this year, could they be looking for a fresh start?
I’m not in those meetings, but you kind of would think that. The bottom line is the quarterback, and Tua is definitely a quarterback that could get them to the playoffs and get wins in the playoffs. That’s the goal. I think he has every intangible, everything he needs to be, and he’s shown that. They’ve got to protect him. They’ve got to keep him off the ground and get the ball in the hands of Tyreek Hill, and De’Von Achane, and the guys who make plays.
I live in South Florida, so I get a chance to see the Dolphins a lot and I’m excited about them as well. I think they’re going to have a good year. It’s interesting to see how it’s going to play out. There are a lot of dramatics in the NFL season but I’m impressed with what I’ve seen. I think everybody is healthy now, but when the season starts and you get a couple of injuries here and there, you never know how it’s going to go.
But I like to think Tua is a great quarterback and they’ve got to get in the playoffs this year, or they could be looking in another direction.
Have the injuries been bad luck for Tua, or is there more he could be doing to protect himself?
I don’t know if it’s bad luck. If you hit your head and then you get a concussion, what do you do with that? The bottom line is, keep him off the ground. If he’ll stop getting hit so much then I think he would flourish. I think he’d have much higher numbers. You’ve just got to protect him and let him do his thing.
Another of your former teams, the Detroit Lions, were the No. 1 seed in the NFC last year but were one-and-done in the playoffs. What do they need to do to take the next step?
I’ll tell you what, I watched the Lions last season and I was very impressed with them. Unfortunately, they had some injury issues late in the year and that contributed to their demise more than anything. That’s my opinion.
The teams that are the most healthy and keep it together during the playoffs are the ones who usually come out on top.
If they can keep the offensive line, the quarterback, the running backs healthy, I think they can get over that hump. I love Jared Goff. He makes his plays, man. When he’s afforded the opportunity to make a play, he makes a play and that’s what it comes down to as a quarterback.
Is Jared Goff underrated given what he’s accomplished in Detroit?
Yes, now he’s putting up astronomical numbers, man. It just goes to show, if you can protect your quarterback and if he’s on the same page with the coach or coordinator who’s calling the plays, it’s a beautiful thing.
If you do those things, you protect your quarterback, you stop the run and you run the football, your chances of winning go up to about 85 per cent.
I think that that was the recipe in Detroit, and then when the quarterback is afforded the opportunity to make a play, he made a lot of plays. It definitely went underrated for whatever reason, but I played the game and I respect the quarterback who puts up numbers, because I know what goes into it.
What do you think of the No. 1 overall pick, Cam Ward?
He’s a rookie, he’s going to have his bumps and bruises, but he’s in the learning process and I know he wants to win. I was very impressed with him in college and I’ve seen some of the highlights of him throwing. He has a great touch on the ball and I’m expecting him to do great things as long as he can stay healthy. I think the Titans are going to have a decent year. Keeping him healthy is the key because he can make every throw, he’s a very good athlete and he can make plays with his feet as well.
By my evaluation, he’s probably the best quarterback coming out this season as a rookie.
Were you surprised by how far Shedeur Sanders fell in the draft?
Based on all the quarterbacks I got to see last season in college, I think Shedeur was a close second behind Cam Ward. I think if Cam Ward was one, I thought Shedeur should have been 1B.
Obviously, I’m not in the war rooms with the teams and I don’t know what they were evaluating, but just off the off the football aspect of it, I thought he was the second best quarterback coming out and I was very surprised to see him drop the way he did.
You hear stories, but the bottom line is you want a quarterback who can make plays and get your team to be in the best situation to win. For whatever reason, teams didn’t pick him, but in my opinion he was the second best option.
Every day is now an opportunity for him to go out and showcase himself, even at practice. He’s just got to go out and show who he is, and show he’s worthy of being a starting quarterback in the NFL. He did have a great game in preseason and he’s got to build on that.
Which quarterback in the NFL plays most similarly to the way you played?
That’s an interesting question. I would say Josh Allen is very, very similar to the way I played the game. He’s a very accurate quarterback. He has a great arm, strong arm, he’s also willing to pull it down, take off and get yards on the ground. I think he’s a great combo quarterback, and he’s a big quarterback as well, so I would say he’s probably the most similar to me and he’s one of my favourite guys to watch as well.
Who is the best quarterback in the NFL?
If I had to pick a quarterback to start an organization, I would pick between Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen. Those two guys I would go with. I love Patrick Mahomes and you know I love Goff, but if I’m going to pick then I’m going to start with one of those guys.
Lamar Jackson is just different. He’s very, very tough to defend when everybody on the offense is doing their job. It’s very tough to stop him as a defense, and same thing with Allen and Mahomes. Those are the top three in my opinion right now. But I would go Lamar, Allen, and then probably Mahomes.
Aside from JJ McCarthy, which quarterback would you pick to surprise everyone this year?
For some reason, I don’t know why, but in Pittsburgh you’ve got a quarterback that’s been in the league a long time, and people are doubting him. He has a great weapon and that organization is known for putting things together to win games. I think Aaron Rodgers is going to have a good year. I’m going to say that right now. I know a lot of people might say I’m crazy, but if he’s healthy, I think he’ll have a great year.
Who’s your pick for the Super Bowl?
I’m a little biased when it comes to the Vikings, I had a lot of success in Minnesota, and I’m going to pull for Minnesota. I just see great things for them and that’s my dark horse.
I’m gonna say it first before anybody else is saying it. I’ll say the Minnesota Vikings.
It’s been too long. It’s time for the Vikings to get a championship. It’s time.
