Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who has missed 22 of 25 possible starts in his career due to injury, won't be on the field when his team takes on the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.

Instead, he insists, it will be his alter ego running the offense.

"I call him Nine," McCarthy said. "Nine comes out and I gotta understand, like, OK, he can't be at his peak performance throughout three-and-a-half hours. So how do I find little ways on the sideline, get back to my breath, get back to my visualization, that can kind of maintain that intense, competitive stamina throughout the whole game? It's just the pure will, determination to get the job done."

Like all great alter egos, Nine has his own origin story.

"To be honest with you, it really kind of started to show up this year. It cam

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