He seems to hover above all of the daily worries that infuse an NFL franchise.

Sunday afternoon, after he led the Vikings to an upset of the Lions in Detroit, McCarthy almost cried when talking about overcoming injuries. He raved about his teammates, and his time at Michigan.

So often, in the NFL, structured interviews feel scripted. You can see them checking off the talking points. The more clichés, the better, the league seems to believe.

When McCarthy speaks, you sense that he’s a happy guy who actually loves playing football and has no use for excuses. While the entire organization chafed at the silly conspiracy theories about the Vikings inventing an ankle injury to take McCarthy off the field, McCarthy himself seemed unfazed.

After one of the Vikings’ practices in London, McCarthy walked the path from the field to the locker room, bumping fists with everyone he saw, whether he knew them or not.

We can’t know where McCarthy is headed, but we’re probably going to enjoy the ride.