It's no secret that Colin Cowherd has never been the biggest fan of Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy, taking shot after shot at the Michigan alum even before he ever took a regular-season snap.
Of course, one has to admit at this point that the concerns Cowherd has had about the second-year signal-caller have mostly turned out to be pretty accurate thus far, as McCarthy has struggled in what should basically be called his rookie year after missing the entirety of his actual rookie campaign after tearing the meniscus in his right knee during the 2024 preseason.
While McCarthy has shown flashes of why the Vikes took him with the 10th pick in the '24 draft, obviously starting with that incredible fourth quarter in a Week 1 win over the Chicago Bears and also including a two-touchdown opening frame in a Week 9 win over the Detroit Lions, the overall results have been less than ideal for Kevin O'Connell's club.
In his six starts this season, the 22-year-old has completed just 54.1 percent of his passes for 929 yards with six touchdowns against 10 interceptions, thus earning the lowest passer rating in the entire NFL at 57.9. To his credit, he's added 120 yards and two scores on the ground, averaging a strong 5.2 yards per carry, but that's not been enough to keep him from getting booed on his own home field.
And then, of course, there are the injury issues, as McCarthy missed five games with a high-ankle sprain and just sat out this past Sunday's matchup with the Seattle Seahawks with a concussion.
Naturally, given the struggles on the field and the injuries, there has been a lot of chatter about the Vikings possibly bringing in some competition for McCarthy ahead of next season. Cowherd certainly wasn't going to stay out of this conversation, and his suggestion for Minnesota has been a pretty popular one overall, as he believes Mac Jones might be the answer.
Colin Cowherd believes the Minnesota Vikings should trade for San Francisco 49ers QB Mac Jones
On a recent episode of "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" show, the 61-year-old was discussing next year's draft and opined that the Vikings should strike a deal with the San Francisco 49ers to acquire Jones.
"I would go get Mac Jones. You won't have to give up a first-round pick because you do have to pay him a little bit. But, I mean, if you're Minnesota, you can't go through this again. You have too good of players: Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison ... how long are you going to be able to keep Brian Flores (defensive coordinator) if you're Minnesota?
I'm watching today, and I'm like J.J. McCarthy, forget the inefficiency, he can't stay healthy. You have to go get somebody. I would go get Mac Jones; I really would. I think to Kyle Shanahan, you're going to have to give up probably a second-round pick, but you can keep your first."
Bringing Jones in to compete with McCarthy certainly isn't the worst idea in the world, as Mac filled in nicely for the Niners in Brock Purdy's absence, going 5-3 in his eight starts and completing 69.6 percent of his passes for 2,151 yards with 13 touchdowns against six interceptions. And that was with a weakened receiving corps.
But a second-round pick for a player who only has one year remaining on his current contract is obviously risky. The upside is that Jones' cap number next season is only $2.2 million, which is far cheaper than what the Vikings would have to pay pretty much any other veteran they could potentially bring in.
It seems Cowherd's idea involves trading for Jones and immediately signing him to an extension, which is also risky, as Mac could come in and easily start having the problems he did in his final year with the New England Patriots or his lone season with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Vikings will undoubtedly bring somebody new into the fold, but we'll just have to wait and see exactly who that person is a few months down the road.