One prominent Minnesota Vikings analyst recently suggested that Kevin O'Connell may be laying the groundwork for moving on from JJ McCarthy.

It was a good day on Sunday in terms of being a Vikings fan. JJ and the team had a solid game. No complaints really. The goal now is to keep it up against Dallas which is going to be tough on the road.

USA Today's NFL experts make their picks for a Week 15 showdown between the Dallas Cowboys and Minnesota Vikings

J.J. McCarthy took a step forward for the Vikings by leading a Week 14 win over the Commanders, but it's come at the cost of the NFL Draft.

Now to ensure depth at the position, Minnesota announced it has elevated veteran John Wolford to the active roster before Sunday’s game. The 30‑year-old, undrafted out of Wake Forest, spent three seasons with the Los Angeles Rams and carries career totals of 626 passing yards, one touchdown, five interceptions and 87 rushing yards in seven games.

The Minnesota Vikings already had a difficult decision on their hands with J.J. McCarthy struggling massively against the Green Bay Packers. Things got worse coming out of the game, as head coach Kevin O'Connell announced that McCarthy has entered the concussion protocol after reporting symptoms

If the Browns and Rams do their jobs, the Vikings will control their own destiny when it comes to keeping their playoff dreams alive for at least one more week. They'll have to cap the day by going into AT&T Stadium in Arlington and beating the Cowboys in primetime.

The Vikings expect J.J. McCarthy back under center which is not necessarily good news for Minnesota. The sophomore signal-caller has been less than good thus far for the Vikings completing just 56% of his passes and throwing more interceptions (10) than touchdowns (9).

One of the things we like to look at, apart from their record, is where the Vikings land in power rankings. ESPN's team power rankings show where the Vikings land, and they went up one spot after the Week 14 win. ESPN's power rankings heading into Week 15 have the Vikings in the 23rd spot, after being 24th last week.

The Cowboys and especially Dak Prescott have missed his protection as he came into the year serving as a starter for head coach Brian Schottenheimer. It’s Guyton’s second season with the Cowboys, having been drafted out of the Oklahoma Sooners in the first round of the 2024 draft.