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Minnesota Vikings Legend Stands Up for “Nine”
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- Minnesota Vikings Legend Stands Up for “Nine”
Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
This season was a tumultuous one for Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy . He was taken in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft with the hope that he could be the quarterback of the future. Unfortunately not once has that looked like the case.
McCarthy was both injured and ineffective this season. He also was produced significantly more memes than he did touchdowns. Of course his "Nine" persona was at the crux of all of those.
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Newly retired Vikings legend Adam Thielen has heard all of it. He is a McCarthy believer as well. He also sympathizes with the idea that the young quarterback was trying to convey.
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Adam Thielen gets MN Vikings JJ McCarthy's alter ego
After officially announcing his retirement from the NFL, legendary Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen has a lot of new time on his hands. He used some recently to hop on Pardon My Take and attempt to clear things up for former teammate J.J. McCarthy and his alter-ego.
Adam Thielen on #Vikings QB JJ McCarthy's alter ego of "Nine"
"First of all, I love that guy… He gets a lot of heat for saying that, but I feel like all of us as athletes have that… When I'm on the field, im a different person, I'm not Adam. I'm not my son's dad, like how I… pic.twitter.com/rmUU8vQ3KU— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) January 22, 2026
"First of all, I love that guy, and I got to see him in the offseason. You know, before, when I was a Panther, I was just in the offseasons. He was here in the summer and I needed a quarterback to throw with and had fantastic throwing sessions with him. Really started to build respect for him, and just his talent, his love for the game. But yeah, he's got that (nine) and he takes a lot of heat for saying that. I feel like all of us athletes have that, like, when I'm on the field I'm a different person. I'm not Adam. I'm not my son's dad. Like how I treat them every day. Like when I'm on the field, I'm a different person. Like, an attitude comes like a mindset, and so I understand where he's coming from. He's a different person on game day, which he should be. That's part of the thing that makes a lot of these guys great when they step across the line."
The intensity that Thielen is talking about is a real and understandable thing. The problem that got McCarthy caught up in the meme culture is that it came in the locker room and a press conference.
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McCarthy looked like a menace in a postgame video, and then he tried to articulate the emotion during a postgame discussion with the media. Unfortunately, "Nine" isn't something that consistently substantiated itself on the field.
The JJ Mccarthy face swaps are the meme of the century 😭 pic.twitter.com/GSaGy6kZOa
— Playoff Sports (@PlayoffSports_) December 6, 2025
In 10 games for the Vikings this season, McCarthy went 6-4 . He didn't finish all of those contests, and completed just 57.6% of his passes . He had 11 touchdowns with 12 interceptions and threw for only 1,632 yards.
McCarthy's inability to dissect the defense had superstar Justin Jefferson needing a Week 18 performance vaulting him over the 1,000 yard mark for the season. If "Nine" was dialed in for anything, then we wouldn't still be discussing the merits of the premise.
Adam Thielen went from an undrafted free agent that grinded his way to a 12-year career and eventual Ring of Honor inclusion. He can have whatever persona he wants on the field. So too can Justin Jefferson turn into Jets. McCarthy though, he still needs to read the room .
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