'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
J. J. McCarthy is a very successful quarterback. Unlike Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels, he didn't win the Heisman Trophy. But unlike the two, he won a national title.
As the leader of the Michigan Wolverines for three seasons, he was known both for his passing ability and confident leadership, but that was not always the case.
Speaking Wednesday on Rich Eisen's eponymous show, McCarthy recalled falling into depression during the COVID pandemic (when he was still in high school), which led him to try meditation (segment starts at 2:15):
"I was sitting there on campus, miserable, not my normal self. And I had to figure out a way to pull myself out of it. And I started looking up, you know, great practices to improve your mental health.
Be the GM of your favorite team, use our free Mock Draft Simulator with trades
"(It) was the first thing that popped up. And you know, once I put it into practice, once I started studying it to a great extent, I started realizing the benefits... It just was a practice that I can never stop because of the benefits that it gave me on and off the field."
Meditation has been an influential part of performance for many NFL players, not just J. J. McCarthy
Once J. J. McCarthy finally enters the NFL, he will become the latest in a group of personalities, both past and present, who use meditation as a means to mentally recuperate. The group includes Joey Bosa, Troy Aikman (after retirement), Derrick Morgan, Brian Hoyer and former coach Pete Carroll.
Quarterback Ryan Tannehill, speaking to Sports Illustrated in 2021, narrated that his interest in the practice began towards the end of his tenure with the Miami Dolphins, when a friend give him a copy of 10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works, the bestseller by former ABC anchor Dan Harris.
It can be gleaned that once it happened, he started playing better, culminating in a breakout 2019 season. He said:
“Obviously within a football game, there are a lot of things that are going on – a lot of thoughts, a lot of actions, a lot of plays.
“Whether they’re good or bad, you have to be able to put them aside and get ready for the next play. That’s something I tried to do even before I was meditating... But I definitely feel like that skill has gotten stronger since I began meditating.”
However, meditation in the NFL did not become a media spectacle until Aaron Rodgers' famous darkness retreat in early 2023.
At the time still pondering his future with the Green Bay Packers, the multiple-time MVP isolated himself for four days and four nights at Sky Cave in Oregon and emerged out of it with a clear desire: to play for the New York Jets.
Rodgers got his wish late in April, being traded there for picks, but tore his Achilles just four snaps into his debut with his new team, which eventually missed the playoffs.
His old team, meanwhile, managed to go as far as the Divisional Round with former backup Jordan Love.
