Vikings’ J.J. McCarthy To Miss Week 4; Latest On QB’s Path Back To Starting Job
The Vikings used a turnover spree to wallop the Bengals in a matchup of backup quarterbacks. Minnesota’s relief option will receive at least one more start, with Kevin O’Connell confirming Carson Wentz will be at the controls for the Vikings’ Ireland game against the Steelers.
While no ambiguity regarding J.J. McCarthy‘s Week 4 status is coming, the fourth-year Minnesota HC did not confirm McCarthy would be back at the controls when he is healthy enough to play. The Vikings want their second-year quarterback, who is recovering from a high ankle sprain, to have a full runup in practice before he is reinserted.
“First and foremost, he’s got to get healthy. And then, I don’t think it’s one of those things where it’s, hey, he’s healthy the night before a game, we’re going to throw him out there and say, ‘Hey, go figure it out’ type of thing,” O’Connell said, via ESPN.com’s Kevin Seifert.
“I think we saw, as phenomenal as he was getting prepared for the Atlanta game, he did miss practice that week. And when you’re in the phase of building up the 10,000 reps and 10,000 hours of what it takes to play the position at a very high level, which we know J.J. McCarthy is going to do, you can’t cut corners on that. And that also doesn’t require an answer on that question today.”
This stance will allow the Vikings to delay an answer here. The team’s definitive response will help define its season. The Vikings cleared the runway for McCarthy this offseason, passing on a Sam Darnold franchise tag and letting Daniel Jones walk in free agency. Minnesota did make an offer to the current Colts starter, but the short-lived Vikings practice squad arm viewed Indianapolis as a better opportunity to start. The Vikings then passed on Sunday foe Aaron Rodgers, who had wanted to join O’Connell and Justin Jefferson in what would have been a high-profile bridge setup. These moves gave McCarthy a clear path to the starting role he was in line to push Darnold for — before his season-ending meniscus injury — at some point in 2024.
Although McCarthy flashed during a comeback win over the Bears, he struggled during a listless Week 2 loss. McCarthy threw two interceptions and took six sacks against Atlanta. McCarthy finished with the second-lowest QBR in Week 2. Wentz benefited from the Bengals’ five turnovers Sunday but was 14 of 20 for 173 yards and two touchdown passes. This performance came after Wentz arrived in Minnesota in late August, with the team trading Sam Howell.
O’Connell pushed back on the notion of this being a McCarthy soft benching, per Seifert, but did indicate value for the young starter in watching Wentz execute. McCarthy’s time on IR last season brought significant developmental limitations, even as he could watch how Darnold operated O’Connell’s offense. Now, another hurdle has emerged. How McCarthy progresses in practice will be critical toward his return.
Wentz, 32, has been benched twice, traded twice and cut once since signing a lucrative Eagles deal in 2019. He has now started for six teams in the past six years, becoming the first quarterback to do so. While Week 18 starts in place of resting QBs (Matthew Stafford, Patrick Mahomes) helped extend that streak, those cameos do remind of the former No. 2 overall pick’s nomadic period after both the Colts and Commanders did not bring him back as a starter.
It would be quite surprising if the Vikings abandoned their McCarthy plan after two starts, but some pressure did come from finishing 14-3 last season. Wentz, though, looks likely to have two more games to make his case.
The Vikings travel from Ireland to England between Weeks 4 and 5, following up their Jets tilt with a Browns matchup in London, and have a Week 6 bye. This would give McCarthy a ramp-up period, though it is within the realm of possibility Wentz could change the organization’s thinking in two AFC North matchups. McCarthy will travel to the Ireland and England games.
Additionally, O’Connell said first-round rookie Donovan Jackson underwent wrist surgery; the Ohio State product is likely to miss the Vikings’ Steelers and Browns games before the bye, Seifert adds.
The reigning Coach of the Year said (via Seifert) the Vikes’ left guard suffered the injury in Week 2 and played through it, due to being deemed unable to further damage his wrist, Sunday. But a surgical repair will lead to some time on the sideline. Sixth-year guard Blake Brandel, a 17-game 2024 starter, would be in line to work as a fill-in as part of Minnesota’s revamped interior O-line.
Eagles Claim WR Xavier Gipson
Xavier Gipson will leave New York for the first time in his NFL career, but the twice-waived wide receiver will remain tied to his Jets rookie contract.
After the Giants waived the young return man, the Eagles have claimed him. Philadelphia has again waived offseason trade acquisition Kenyon Green in a corresponding move. Philly had cut Green earlier, only to bring him back via a practice squad spot. Green will be eligible for another such move if he clears waivers.
Although Gipson has made some contributions on offense during his three-year career, he is best known as a return specialist. Memorably completing a walk-off punt-return score to give the Jets an upset win over the Bills in Aaron Rodgers‘ four-play debut, Gipson served as Gang Green’s regular kick and punt returner from 2023-24. That game was also Gipson’s first, but he remained a Jets regular for the next two seasons.
The Stephen F. Austin product led the NFL with 33 punt returns last season, matching his 2023 total, and combined for 39 kick returns in that span. Fumbles have also been a key part of Gipson’s NFL run; he has already fumbled 10 times in 35 games. A fourth-quarter lost fumble in Week 1 led to a new Jets regime waiving him. The Giants claimed Gipson but did not use him in a game. He remains tied to a prorated $1.03MM base salary.
The Eagles have used Jahan Dotson as their punt returner, with John Metchie‘s seven kick returns leading the way for the defending Super Bowl champions. Philly’s top two kick returners from 2024 — Kenneth Gainwell, Isaiah Rodgers — left in free agency.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/22/25
Here are Monday’s practice squad transactions:
Arizona Cardinals
- Released: DL Kyon Barrs
Atlanta Falcons
- Released: CB C.J. Henderson
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: OL Nick Broeker
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: WR Cedrick Wilson Jr.
Henderson did not play during his short stint with the Falcons, though this does not necessarily wrap his time with the team. Atlanta had previously cut the former top-10 pick in August, subsequently signing him back to the practice squad. Henderson has 32 career starts but has never come especially close to justifying his draft slot. Spending time with the Steelers last year, Henderson has not played since the 2023 season — with the Panthers.
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/22/25
Here are Monday’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Elevated: TE Zaire Mitchell-Paden, DE Brent Urban
Detroit Lions
- Elevated: TE Ross Dwelley
New Orleans Saints
- Waived: WR Kevin Austin Jr.
New York Giants
- Waived: OLB Tomon Fox
Falcons Fire WRs Coach Ike Hilliard
The Falcons are moving on from their wide receivers coach early in the season. Ike Hilliard is out, according to CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones. This was Hilliard’s second season in that position.
Pass-game coordinator T.J. Yates will take over in the role, per a team announcement. A former NFL wideout, Hilliard has been a coach in the league for 13 seasons. Hilliard, 49, has been with five NFL teams since he began coaching in the league in 2011. Only one of those stays (with Washington) surpassed two years in length. This is a performance-based move, The Athletic’s Josh Kendall tweets.
Hilliard remains better known for his run as a receiver, enjoying memorable stays in New York and Tampa after being a No. 7 overall pick in 1997, but he has been in the coaching ranks since being an assistant in UFL 1.0 from 2009-10. He has since been an assistant wide receivers coach with the Dolphins and wideouts coach with the Bills, Washington (two stints), Steelers and Falcons. For a season in 2022, Hilliard served as Auburn’s WRs coach and interim co-OC.
Raheem Morris added Hilliard nearly 20 years after the two overlapped in Tampa. The Falcons HC was on Jon Gruden‘s staff during Hilliard’s final NFL seasons, which came in Tampa. Hilliard, who had served previously as a Giants Amani Toomer sidekick from 1997-2004, overlapped with Morris in 2005 and from 2007-08.
The Bucs released Hilliard weeks into Morris’ first offseason in charge back in 2009; he did not play again. Hilliard served as Washington’s receivers coach under Jay Gruden from 2014-19 and interviewed for the Lions’ OC job during his two-year Pittsburgh stint (2020-21). The Steelers did not renew Hilliard’s contract in 2022. After not coaching in 2023, he caught on with the Falcons.
Last season, Drake London took a significant step forward — after being tied to run-based attacks in 2022 and ’23 — with a 1,271-yard showing. He is off to a much slower start this year, totaling 159 through three games. Despite Darnell Mooney playing in two games, no other Atlanta receiver has more than 70 receiving yards. No Falcons receiver has caught a touchdown pass this season, and the dismissal comes after a 30-0 upset loss to the previously winless Panthers.
Yates is an ex-quarterback-turned-Arthur Smith holdover Morris retained in 2024. Yates served as Atlanta’s WRs coach from 2022-23 before being shifted to QBs coach in 2024. Beginning this season as pass-game coordinator, the 38-year-old staffer will return to a previous Falcons role.
Seahawks To Add RB Khalil Herbert
Khalil Herbert‘s free agency stay will end, and the former Bears starting running back is headed for a fourth team in 11 months. The Seahawks are adding Herbert to their practice squad, NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo tweets.
The Seahawks played without Zach Charbonnet in Week 3, and Kenneth Walker has dealt with a few injury issues during his four-year career. Herbert will supply Seattle some insurance, joining a team that rosters former UDFAs George Holani and Jacardia Wright as active-roster reserves.
Traded from the Bears to the Bengals at last year’s deadline, Herbert spent training camp with the Colts but did not earn a roster spot behind Jonathan Taylor. Herbert signed with Indianapolis early in free agency; despite his experience, the former sixth-round pick could not earn the RB2 role with the AFC South club. The Colts added Herbert to their practice squad following his release but replaced him with Ameer Abdullah a day later.
Herbert worked out for the Seahawks today, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson, who adds Brandon Bolden and Myles Gaskin also took part in the Seattle audition. Herbert had been on the workout circuit for a bit, drawing interest from a few teams — including the Commanders — to open this season.
The Bolden part of this news is interesting, as the ex-Patriots mainstay is now 35 and was out of football last season. The 11-year veteran, a Patriots UDFA back in 2012, would be the NFL’s oldest active running back if he catches on with a team this season. Primarily a special-teamer who had followed Josh McDaniels from New England to Las Vegas, Bolden has just 304 career carries — helping to explain his NFL staying power. Herbert has 400 despite entering the NFL nine years later.
While Bolden played out his Raiders contract after the 2023 season, Herbert’s Bears rookie deal wrapped in Cincinnati. Chicago dealt the ex-David Montgomery sidekick to Cincy for a 2025 seventh-round pick. That trade came to pass after Zack Moss‘ season-ending neck injury, but Chase Brown took over as a three-down player and kept Herbert as a clear backup. Herbert logged only 28 carries in eight Bengals games, gaining 114 yards. This came after the Bears phased him out following the D’Andre Swift signing.
Herbert fared better earlier in his career, eclipsing 600 rushing yards in 2022 and ’23. He and Montgomery helped Justin Fields oversee a top-ranked rushing attack in 2022. Gaining a career-high 731 rushing yards that year, Herbert averaged 5.7 per tote. He started nine games in 2023 — after Montgomery’s Detroit defection — and gained 611 yards (4.6 YPC). The 27-year-old’s upward mobility will presumably be tied to Walker and Charbonnet’s availability.
Examining The Misses Affecting Chiefs’ Offensive Decline
Patrick Mahomes is both a player carrying one of the great early-career résumés in NFL history and one whose production since the start of the 2023 season has not aligned with his reputation. The all-time quarterback talent has not led impressive offenses since his 2022 MVP season, but the Chiefs' success in this period has masked this alarmingly unexciting unit's work.
Kansas City slipped to 15th in scoring offense in 2023 but won Super Bowl LVIII anyway. The Chiefs' first-stringers managed to go 15-1 in 2024, also doing so with the NFL's No. 15-ranked offense. Through two games this season, the team's hopes of a reignition on that side of the ball -- perhaps the central organizational talking point this offseason -- appear misplaced.
While the Chiefs will certainly improve once Rashee Rice's six-game personal conduct suspension ends, that is unlikely to be a cure-all. Personnel misses have created deficiencies here, and Mahomes has gone from a player on pace to be the greatest ever at his position to one struggling to remind consistently of his early artistry.
This is not to say the Chiefs' offense is talent-less outside of its quarterback; the team has an All-Pro center (Creed Humphrey) and a Pro Bowl right guard (Trey Smith). It also has seen promising early work from first-round left tackle Josh Simmons. While many teams would envy that O-line foundation, other issues have dragged the Chiefs into offensive mediocrity despite employing the league's biggest star.
Packers Discussed Romeo Doubs With Teams During Offseason
The Packers’ wide receiver surplus — created by the team using first- and third-round selections at the position in April — generated intrigue during the offseason. Jayden Reed‘s agent discussed where the team’s top returning wideout stood in the grand scheme, and Christian Watson‘s status was murky due to the ACL tear he suffered in Week 18 of last season.
Fast-forward to mid-September, and the Packers are 2-0 without much production from first-round pick Matthew Golden. The former Houston and Texas pass catcher has two catches for 16 yards through two games. Third-rounder Savion Williams is also working as a backup. Reed’s collarbone injury (and subsequent foot surgery) brought a complication, and the team indeed had Watson in its long-term plans — as the recent one-year, $11MM extension showed.
This setup leaves only Romeo Doubs as a contract-year player in this mix. The arrivals of Golden and Williams to go with the Watson extension point Doubs out of Wisconsin by 2026, and The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman notes the Packers are believed to have discussed Doubs with teams this offseason.
Given the Packers’ injury issues at receiver right now, Doubs stands as a more important piece than he otherwise would be. Reed is out indefinitely, with a two-surgery rehab effort likely prolonging his recovery timetable, while Watson is on the reserve/PUP list. Watson may be readying to return when first eligible, but it is also quite possible the Packers give the recently paid receiver a ramp-up period after designating him for return. Indeed, Schneidman adds that Doubs is unlikely to be moved now.
I posited Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks as potential trade chips this offseason, but with the other two returning WRs down, both players are fairly important to the team’s early-season plan. Tucker Kraft looking increasingly poised for a top-market tight end extension also represents an important Packers pass-game storyline, as the third-year player may be the team’s top target while Doubs, Wicks and Golden mix in during the Reed and Watson absences.
A fourth-round pick out of Nevada in 2022, Doubs has played well in spurts for a Packers team that has rolled with an egalitarian setup at receiver post-Davante Adams. Doubs eclipsed 600 yards in each of the past two seasons, scoring eight touchdowns in 2023 and adding four last year. Last season did bring a one-game team-imposed suspension after Doubs expressed frustration about his role. But he reemerged as a solid auxiliary Jordan Love target in the weeks that followed. The Steelers’ George Pickens trade loosely tied them to Doubs, due to his rookie-year overlap with Aaron Rodgers, but nothing came of it.
With Reed, Wicks, Golden, Williams and now Watson signed beyond this season, Doubs would appear to be auditioning for other teams this year. Among first-time UFAs at receiver, the 6-foot-2 weapon would join Pickens, Jauan Jennings, Rashid Shaheed, Wan’Dale Robinson, Alec Pierce and Jalen Tolbert as notable options. Though, veterans like Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel and Jakobi Meyers are also noncontracted for 2026. The Packers and Doubs would benefit from another productive season, even if this partnership appears unlikely to continue beyond this year.
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/18/25
Here are Thursday’s minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
- Elevated: LB Keonta Jenkins, DT Zion Logue
Miami Dolphins
- Elevated: S Jordan Colbert, K Riley Patterson
NFL Addresses Tom Brady Conflict-Of-Interest Matter; Teams Express Concern About Raiders Owner’s Dual Role
Rarely able to watch the Raiders play in-person due to a high-profile second job, Tom Brady did survey the team he partially owns Monday night in Las Vegas. ESPN cameras spotting the QB legend-turned-owner/broadcaster in the coaches’ booth has drawn expected scrutiny.
Brady watching the Raiders-Chargers matchup from the coaches’ booth would certainly not be cause for concern if he only served as a Raiders minority owner; being in Year 2 as FOX’s top color analyst has triggered pushback — to the point another NFL statement on the matter surfaced.
“There are no policies that prohibit an owner from sitting in the coaches’ booth or wearing a headset during a game,” an NFL spokesman said in a statement (via CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones). “Brady was sitting in the booth in his capacity as a limited partner.
“… Tom continues to be prohibited from going to a team facility for practices or production meetings. He may attend production meetings remotely but may not attend in person at the team facility or hotel. He may also conduct an interview off site with a player like he did last year a couple times, including for the Super Bowl. Of course, as with any production meeting with broadcast teams, it’s up to the club, coach or players to determine what they say in those sessions.”
While the NFL’s Brady policy of sorts prohibits him from attending production meetings with coaches and players onsite, the league made a notable change this offseason by allowing him to attend them virtually. Last year, Brady could serve as FOX’s lead analyst but could not attend production meetings. The image of Brady in the coaches’ booth Monday reignited the uproar about this conflict of interest.
The league’s ownership contingent had continued to delay Brady’s Raiders stake from being approved. While Mark Davis‘ stake price was part of a stalling effort that lasted over a year, the eventual approval last fall came with stipulations regarding the 23-year QB veteran’s FOX gig.
Brady has not entered another team’s facility due to that part of his rule set remaining in place, but he has been given access to remote production meetings. Concerns about this part of the popular announcer/owner’s deal are still generating issues from other teams, according to the Washington Post’s Mark Maske, Tashan Reed and Ben Strauss. Though, a high-ranking team official told the Post the NFL has dismissed other clubs’ concerns about this “unfair” Brady arrangement.
Several owners were hesitant to approve Brady’s dual role, per the Post. That was effectively understood due to the length of time between Brady’s stake agreement (May 2023) and its unanimous approval (October 2024). Since, Brady has taken on a lead role in Raiders personnel.
Although Brady’s day-to-day Raiders role remains murky, Mark Davis had said he wanted him front and center for the team’s QB and HC searches. Brady input led to the Raiders firing GM Tom Telesco after one season (the one-and-done Vegas GM is now working at Sirius XM Radio), and the Spytek hire came after he and Brady both overlapped with the Buccaneers and as Michigan teammates decades ago. Brady also led the Raiders’ recruitment of Matthew Stafford during trade negotiations, and the former AFC East mainstay’s hesitation on Sam Darnold led Las Vegas to go another way at QB.
With Brady heavily involved in Raiders matters, his broadcast team will naturally be unlikely to receive many useful nuggets during pregame production meetings. Brady called the Commanders-Giants’ Week 1 matchup; the Raiders face Washington in Week 3. In Week 4, Brady will call the Cowboys-Bears game before seeing the Raiders face the Bears in Week 5.
While Ben Johnson — whom Brady used his FOX job to scout as a hopeful Raiders HC option last year — downplayed this conflict of interest, ESPN’s Peter Schrager said OC Chip Kelly told him he discusses film and the gameplan with Brady two or three times per week. Pete Carroll then denied Brady’s Kelly meetings occur that frequently, per Maske, Reed and Strauss. The NFL, per Sports Illustrated’s Conor Orr, also deleted a tweet about the Brady-Kelly conversations.
“We have conversations. I talk to Tom, and Chip talks to Tom regularly,” Carroll said. “We have a tremendous asset, and we all get along well and respect each other. And so, we just talk about life and football and whatever comes. He has great insight, so we’re lucky to have him as an owner.”
Teams are also leery with regards to future Raiders free agency pursuits, according to Jones, as pregame meetings could help the minority owner — though, perhaps not substantially — file information away for his team down the line. Information regarding teams’ values of certain players would stand to be another potential issue here. But this matter continues to be one the NFL is willing to live with in exchange for having Brady continue to play prominent roles.