J.J. McCarthy’s future has become the main event of another Minnesota Vikings offseason, even with five weeks before the regular season kickoff. The 23-year-old quarterback finally got his first NFL action in 2025, but the team’s spring moves have left fans wondering whether his run as the presumed franchise quarterback is already over.
Kyler Murray arrived on a one-year free-agent deal after seven seasons and 87 starts with Arizona. The 2019 Offensive Rookie of the Year hasn’t officially been named Minnesota’s 2026 starter, though all signs point toward the former No. 1 pick getting the first crack at Kevin O’Connell’s offense.
McCarthy, selected 10th overall in 2024, missed his rookie season with a knee injury before starting 10 games last year. He completed 140 of 243 passes for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, posting a 72.6 passer rating. He added 181 rushing yards and four scores.
J.J. McCarthy could join Christian Ponder in Minnesota Vikings draft history
Phil Mackey’s research on SKOR North’s “Purple Daily” podcast revealed only two top-15 quarterback busts in the last 40 years who received fewer than 11 starts from the teams that drafted them. Trey Lance started four games for San Francisco, while Andre Ware made six starts for Detroit.
McCarthy’s 10-start total prompted Mackey to put the possible divorce in historical terms. “This would be one of the quickest pullings of the plug of any top 15 drafted quarterback in our lifetimes if they didn’t give J.J. McCarthy another start."
Christian Ponder gives Minnesota fans a useful comparison. The Vikings drafted him 12th overall in 2011 and gave him 36 starts. He retired with a QB record of 14-21-1, with his best season at 10-6 in 2012. Other first-round misses, including Jake Locker (23 starts, Titans), Cade McNown (15 starts, Bears), Heath Shuler (13 starts, Redskins), Josh Rosen (13 starts, Cardinals), JaMarcus Russell (25 starts, Raiders) and Zach Wilson (33 starts, Jets), all received longer auditions than McCarthy has.
Judd Zulgad sees a trade as more likely than an extended comeback. “I think there’s a better chance that McCarthy ends with 10 starts as a Viking and is traded than there is that he ever sniffs, let’s just say, 30 starts.”
Teddy Bridgewater doesn’t qualify for Mackey’s top-15 sample because the Vikings selected him 32nd in 2014, but even that first-round experiment lasted 28 starts across three seasons in Minnesota. Murray brings 87 starts to camp, McCarthy brings 10, and O’Connell hasn’t named his Week 1 starter.
Add us as a preferred source on Google