JJ McCarthy has a new home. On Monday, hours after the Minnesota Vikings won against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, McCarthy was traded to the New York Giants for a fifth-round draft pick.
The Ringer’s Tom Pelissero broke the news on Twitter. McCarthy’s tenure in Minnesota lasted a little over two seasons.
Reporters asked Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell about the trade. O’Connell admitted that he and the Vikings coaching team tried their best to help McCarthy develop. McCarthy was on the right track.
I do think, you know, I do think he did. I do think he did develop and grow. And I think he improved. I think he’s improved this offseason.
Kevin O’Connell said at the Vikings press conference on Monday
O’Connell has faith that John Harbaugh and his team of specialists can bring the best out of the third-year signal caller.
The Vikings drafted McCarthy in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. His rookie season ended early due to an injury. In year two, he took over from Sam Darnold, who signed with the Seattle Seahawks. McCarthy went 6-4 and was benched a couple of times.
During the 2026 offseason, the Vikings signed free agent Kyler Murray. Murray won the starter’s job while McCarthy fell to third choice behind veteran Carson Wentz. McCarthy pledged to improve his status on the team. However, three games into the new season, the Vikings accepted a trade offer from the Giants, as .
Analysts had urged the Vikings to trade McCarthy for a long time. Briefly, that window looked closed until Week 2. The Giants starter, second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart, suffered serious in his knee. He underwent surgery, leaving the Giants with just two quarterbacks on the roster.
Jameis Winston became the de facto starter, with Jake Haener taking his place on the bench. But this isn’t the ’70s and ’80s when teams’ go-to strategy was sticking with two quarterbacks. In the modern-day NFL, teams prefer the three-quarterback system. Some teams even add a fourth, like the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Steelers, as a safety valve.
After Dart was ruled out for the rest of the year, head coach John Harbaugh teased that they were looking to sign an additional quarterback. including McCarthy, Mac Jones, Mason Rudolph, and Deigo Pavia. The Giants settled with McCarthy.
I think he’s a strong young quarterback, has some experience in [the] National Football League, obviously was a very high draft pick, very talented player, and is going to make us a stronger football team.
Harbaugh said
Compared to the other options, McCarthy is the safest choice. Mac Jones and Mason Rudolph wouldn’t be cheap, and they’d demand regular first-team football down the line. At this point, both are better than Winston. Diego Pavia has never played in the NFL, so he was out of the race early on.
McCarthy has first-team experience. Sure, he hasn’t performed at a great level, but he could do well in the Greg Roman and Matt Nagy system in time.
Harbaugh has already made it clear that Winston is the starter. However, the former first overall pick looked bad when he stepped in for Dart in LA. Winston completed for 111 yards and threw one interception. He was marginally better against the Titans on Sunday. But the Giants had to rely on field goals and a from Titans quarterback Cam Ward to earn a 12-7 victory.
Winston will likely keep his job for now, but the Giants are too talented to let this year go to waste. So, McCarthy’s addition could shake things up a bit.
Let’s address the elephant in the room. McCarthy is reaping the benefits of his decorated college career. It’s one of the reasons the Vikings’ former general manager, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, pushed to take McCarthy in the first round, even though analysts weren’t too high on him.
McCarthy played college football at Michigan. Back then, the Wolverines were coached by Jim Harbaugh, the younger brother of John Harbaugh and the son of legendary coach Jack Harbaugh.
Jim Harbaugh ran a quarterback-friendly, run-first system. Michigan won bowl games, conference supremacy, and a national title by applying this method. McCarthy posted a ridiculous 27-1 record as the starter.
John Harbaugh has a similar setup in New York. The offense runs variations of play-action and emphasizes short yardage. Jaxson Dart bought into the idea in record time, and the .
McCarthy shouldn’t be too out of place in the Big Apple. The way Winston is playing right now, regardless of his popularity, the fans would soon want a change. McCarthy just needs to be ready when the time comes.
However, McCarthy’s biggest upside is his age. He will turn 24 next January, and he’s on a rookie contract. The Giants can trigger his fifth-year option and pay him the league average for first-rounders. If he fails to show growth by then, the Giants can simply trade him for picks.