Despite the Minnesota Vikings signing former No. 1 overall pick Kyler Murray to a one-year deal to compete with J.J. McCarthy, former No. 2 overall pick Carson Wentz still decided to don the Purple & Gold for a second season, re-signing with the club on a one-year deal worth up to $3 million.
Hilariously enough, his $1.545 million base salary is actually the highest of any QB on the Minnesota roster, with Murray at $1.3 million, McCarthy at $1.075 million, and Max Brosmer at $1.005 million. Pretty wild, right? But that's not why we're here.
Now, before re-upping with the Vikes, Wentz had been linked to other organizations, ones for whom he might have a stronger shot of genuinely competing for a QB1 role. Naturally, the New York Jets were one of them, not only because they just forever seem to be a mess at the quarterback position but also because their new offensive coordinator is Frank Reich, who was Wentz's OC for his first two years with the Philadelphia Eagles and his head coach for one year with the Indianapolis Colts.
The Jets, of course, brought in Geno Smith after trading away Justin Fields, but Gang Green insider Connor Hughes has confirmed that New York really wanted Wentz in its QB room. Oddly enough, the subject came up on SportsNet New York's SportsNite when he was discussing Kirk Cousins no longer being an option for the Jets after signing with the Las Vegas Raiders.
"[The Jets] were really hoping that player [in the backup QB role] was going to be Carson Wentz, and that was somebody that Frank Reich really was hoping just because he's somebody who knows his offense and somebody they value a lot," Hughes said. "And if he needed to play, he could come in there and do it at a high level because of his familiarity with Reich's system. But unfortunately, Carson decided to go to the Minnesota Vikings, where it would not surprise me at all to see him as Kyler Murray's backup, not J.J. McCarthy."
Carson Wentz played decently in 2025 and could still end up as the Minnesota Vikings' QB2 in 2026
Hughes certainly brings up an interesting point there at the end about Wentz backing up Murray instead of McCarthy.
As it stands now, following some recent comments made by Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell, it seems pretty clear that if all three former first-round QBs are still on the roster come July, Wentz will walk into training camp as the clear-cut QB3.
The "if" in that sentence, of course, is reserved for the scenario that sees McCarthy traded. Minnesota seems content to keep him and has reportedly already turned down multiple offers. But as this wild offseason has shown (look no further than Cousins' contract), anything and everything is on the table in the NFL these days.
Wentz, who I genuinely believe could have competed with Geno Smith for the QB1 role with the Jets, filled in admirably enough when McCarthy went down early this past season with an ankle injury, going 2-3 in his five starts while completing 65.1 percent of his passes for 1,216 yards with six touchdowns against five interceptions.
It should be noted that three of those picks came in his final two games, which he started despite suffering a dislocated shoulder, torn labrum, and fractured socket in his third start. Wentz attempted to play through the pain, but his season came to a close after that fifth start against the Los Angeles Chargers, as he required surgery. So, his health certainly played a factor in those last two losses.
There's a long time between now and Week 1 of the regular season, and the Vikings' QB situation should be nothing short of entertaining.