J.J. McCarthy just reignited the debate Vikings fans wanted to forget

In his first action with the New York Giants that wasn't part of a random gimmick play package, former Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy almost led his new team to an improbable comeback win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.

Trailing the Saints by 24 points with less than 12 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Giants decided to bench starting signal-caller Jameis Winstion and replace him with McCarthy.

Things got off to an ugly start for the former Vikings quarterback, as his fourth pass attempt of the contest wound up getting intercepted by New Orleans cornerback Martin Emerson.

McCarthy bounced back nicely, however, as he came back on the field for New York's next offensive drive and led the team on a six-play, 45-yard drive that ended with a five-yard rushing touchdown by Giants running back Tyron Tracy.

Following the Tracy touchdown, New York decided to go for two, and they were able to convert it after McCarthy connected with Giants tight end Isaiah Likely on the right side of the end zone.

After New York's defense forced a 3-and-out, McCarthy came back on the field for another Giants offensive drive, and this time, he threw his first touchdown pass of the 2026 season.

New York trailed New Orleans by seven points with one last chance to tie or win the game in the final minutes of the fourth quarter.

McCarthy helped lead the Giants' offense all the way down the Saints' 14-yard line, and with 12 seconds left in the game, he took the snap on a 4th-and-1 and fired an incompletion into the back of the end zone to seal the win for New Orleans.

J.J. McCarthy's Week 6 performance for Giants will only add fuel to the argument against the Vikings' decision to trade him

It wasn't the result that New York and McCarthy were hoping for, but the former Minnesota quarterback looked solid in his first legitimate action under center for the Giants on Sunday.

Despite only really playing for 75 percent of the fourth quarter, McCarthy still put up solid numbers as he completed 52. 4 percent of his passes for 243 yards, one touchdown, and one interception, in addition to rushing for 26 yards.

With the Vikings having a bye this week, almost the entire fanbase was very aware of what McCarthy did for New York on Sunday, and some shared their thoughts online about the former Minnesota signal-caller's performance.

It's still way too early to make a decision about whether or not the Vikings made the right decision to trade McCarthy to the Giants earlier this season.

But the young quarterback's performance against New Orleans is definitely going to help the case of the Minnesota fans and media personalities arguing that the Vikings shouldn't have traded him.

Considering how well McCarthy played when inserted into the game on Sunday, it wouldn't be shocking if the Giants named him their starting quarterback over Winston for the team's upcoming matchup in Week 7 against the Houston Texans.

If that happens, then it's safe to say a good amount of Vikings fans will be watching that game closely to see how McCarthy can follow up the performance he had against the Saints this weekend.

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