Vikings Reportedly Eye '3-Year Window' to Win NFL Super Bowl with J.J. McCarthy as QB1

The Minnesota Vikings are committed to giving quarterback J.J. McCarthy plenty of runway as the starter, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

Fowler reported Sunday on SportsCenter the Vikings ultimately weren't all that enamored with the idea of signing Aaron Rodgers because they "saw this as a three-year window right now to win a championship with a really good quarterback they like on a rookie deal."

McCarthy is getting a bit of a boost with four-time Pro Bowler Justin Jefferson working out at the team's OTAs. Jefferson doesn't necessarily need the voluntary reps to sharpen up, and he sees this as a way to help his QB.

"I feel like it's more of for the [quarterbacks] than for me," he said, per ESPN's Kevin Seifert. "I mean, it really doesn't matter who's throwing the ball. As soon as the ball gets close to my face, I'm going to try to catch it. It doesn't matter how fast the ball is going, the spin of it, or if it's coming from a lefty or a righty.

"I mean, my job is to catch the ball. So I feel like this is more for the quarterback to see the tempo of the routes, seeing how I run the routes, seeing the different moves that I add on to my routes. And I feel like working with that is more of a quarterback thing than a receiver thing."

According to Seifert, the Vikings approached Jefferson about attending OTAs, which he considered a "no-brainer" since he wanted "to build that connection with my teammates and especially with my quarterback."

The moment Minnesota declined to use the franchise tag on Sam Darnold, it looked clear the franchise was setting the stage for McCarthy to take over.

The Athletic's Michael Silver, Dianna Russini and Alec Lewis reported in March the Vikes "have been strongly weighing the possibility of pursuing Rodgers as a replacement" for Darnold. At the same time, they "remain very high on McCarthy."

Even if Rodgers came in as the backup from the start of training camp, a lot of people outside Minnesota would've viewed his arrival as a sign the coaching staff and/or front office was waffling on McCarthy a bit.

And as Fowler referenced in his report, this is when Minnesota needs to capitalize on McCarthy's rookie contract, potentially gives the team a reliable starter at a bargain price.

McCarthy's salary cap hit between now and 2027 maxes out at $7 million. Darnold, by comparison is averaging $33.5 million from the three-year pact he signed with the Seattle Seahawks. Kirk Cousins was also making $30-plus annually during his final three seasons in purple and gold.

One of the purposes behind using a first-round pick on McCarthy was that general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah would have a ton of cost savings for three to four years that can be spread across the rest of the roster.

The front office used that flexibility to great effect already. Per Over the Cap, Minnesota handed out the second-most guaranteed money ($175.3 million) this offseason.

That kind of spending was possible thanks largely to McCarthy's below-market salary.