EAGAN, Minn. — J.J. McCarthy exudes his love for the game of football from every rep at practice to the anticipated snaps in upcoming preseason games.
He's also developing ways to, as said by Billy Chapel (the pitcher played by Kevin Costner in For the Love of the Game), "clear the mechanism."
McCarthy didn't mention that phrase Wednesday during his session with Twin Cities media members, but he did openly share about how he cleanses a disappointing practice.
He explained that he'll keep his tights from practice on throughout the evening, do a reflection on the day and remove them and the day's burden before taking a shower.
"I have this thing, whenever I had a bad practice to start at Michigan, I'd keep my tights on the whole night, and it's a little dirty, but it's a good metaphorical way for me to let it go," McCarthy said. "Because at the end of the night I'll just stand in front of the mirror, just kind of debrief how the day went, what I did in the morning, what was different from the following days that were successful and just kind of overall feeling and vibe of that day.
"And then once I go through that, I look myself in the eye and say, 'That's all gone. We're letting go. We're moving on to the next day,' and take those tights off and don't think about it ever again."
McCarthy developed that practice as a freshman at Michigan, saying it "just happened accidentally" before deciding "this is gonna be my thing."
"I had a lot more, let's just say gross acquired wear, throughout the day back in college, but yeah, we're still gonna continue that tradition because I feel like it's very beneficial to my growth."
The explanation began when McCarthy was asked what he is most proud of so far. He explained how he moved past a bad outcome and followed a solid performance without a ride on the "emotional roller coaster."
"That's what being a quarterback in this league is all about because we have so much pressure on our shoulders and things aren't always going to go our way, and not letting that pressure suffocate us and deflate us and eventually, you know, lift us up and help you be better for the next days," McCarthy said.
Asked why he thought he struggled in the referenced practice, McCarthy replied: "I just felt like I was rushed up mentally, just not settling in."
"Peyton Manning gave me this great wisdom before I entered the league, and he was saying, you know, respect the NFL, but don't over respect it. Don't speed up your footwork, don't speed up your thought processes," McCarthy said. "That's something I fell victim to that day, so it was a great learning experience."
McCarthy believes in the self-evaluation efforts as well as applying tips from teammates, whether it's a way to memorize the plays that has helped Nick Mullens, or working on his cadences to keep defenses a bit off — a recommendation from Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores; or remembering "confidence is key" — a message passed along from Justin Jefferson.
He has put together some impressive performances along with veteran newcomer Sam Darnold, adjusting to this offensive system, as well as navigating the multiple challenges Flores can throw at an offense.
Teams usually don't utilize intense game plans for preseason games, preferring to just line up and play.
"The most eager thing to see is just the vanilla defense, honestly," McCarthy joked when asked what he is anticipating Saturday. "But out of myself, it would be just making sure the things that we harp on, all the little details, all the little intricacies that go into each rep show up on game day, when there's a lot of noise and there's a crowd and just being able to lock into the level of my training that I've been doing on a consistent basis since I got here and be able to do it when the time matters."
