The Minnesota Vikings ended an era on Monday when The Ringer’s Tom Pelissero reported that they had traded J.J. McCarthy to the New York Giants in exchange for a fifth-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.
The Athletic’s Alec Lewis also noted that the deal is pending a physical, but it looks like the Vikings have officially moved on from the highest-drafted quarterback in franchise history with the 10th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
The news of McCarthy’s trade was expected after he lost a training camp battle to Kyler Murray for the starting job and was demoted to third string behind current backup Carson Wentz later in the summer.
But some still held out hope due to his age (23) and the fact that he had only 10 starts in the NFL under his belt.
In the end, however, it was probably best for both sides to move on, and it’s a move where the Vikings and McCarthy just have to accept that it was never going to work out in Minnesota.
J.J. McCarthy’s Vikings saga finally ended after his trade to the Giants
McCarthy arrived in Minnesota with sky-high expectations. Aside from his draft position, McCarthy was the heir apparent to Kirk Cousins as the Vikings’ franchise quarterback after the veteran left to sign a four-year, $180 million contract with the Atlanta Falcons in the spring of 2024.
Replacing a quarterback that some fans still wish was playing in Minnesota was already big shoes to fill. But they kept getting bigger as McCarthy acclimated to life in the NFL.
Sam Darnold signed shortly before McCarthy was drafted, and when McCarthy went down with a torn meniscus in the 2024 preseason opener, it opened the door for Darnold to revive his career and lead the Vikings to 14 wins.
When Minnesota let Darnold leave for the Seattle Seahawks in free agency, it raised the antenna for Aaron Rodgers as he mulled over where to continue his career after his release from the New York Jets. But the Vikings turned him down in favor of McCarthy, creating an even bigger set of expectations.
The chain of events led to the 2025 season, where things didn’t go as planned. McCarthy stumbled to a win in his first career start against the Chicago Bears but was injured the following week in a loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
Whispers of a “soft benching” followed before McCarthy returned to the starting lineup and beat the Detroit Lions in Week 9, but he struggled with his accuracy, completing 57.6 percent of his passes, and his health as he suffered a concussion in a Week 12 loss to the Green Bay Packers and a hand fracture that knocked him out of a game against the New York Giants and the season finale against the Packers.
In the end, McCarthy threw for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions in his only year as the Vikings starter.
But perhaps more damning was what happened off the field. McCarthy’s admission of an alter ego named “Nine” became a meme that will dominate the internet for years to come, and his decision to hit a “Griddy” celebration before scoring a touchdown in a Week 15 win over the Dallas Cowboys came after Kevin O’Connell and the rest of the coaching staff asked him not to do it because he fumbled while attempting it during practice.
Things got weirder as Vikings radio analyst Ben Leber complained about the “theatrics” of McCarthy removing himself from the game and placing a towel over his hand during the 2025 season finale, and Cris Carter became McCarthy’s mortal enemy after getting into a spat with his personal quarterback coach on social media.
This set the stage for a bizarre offseason saga. The Vikings, looking for a better standard of quarterback play, signed Murray and brought back Wentz.
When McCarthy addressed the media for the first time during the offseason program, he likened his relationship with Murray to “two guys in a classroom…and it’s the coaches’ responsibility to teach us and coach us.”
The Vikings didn’t help matters by staging a competition that Murray seemingly won when he put pen to paper in March, and McCarthy didn’t help himself by claiming the demotion was “out of my control.”
A shaky preseason continued to make things worse, and a report by Tyler Dunne of the Go Long Substack suggested that McCarthy struggled to process on the field and frustrated the coaching staff by resisting coaching and his off-the-field antics.
By the time he suffered an ankle injury during the second preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens, it felt like the Vikings were trying to trade McCarthy.
Things seemingly boiled over when McCarthy didn’t play in the preseason finale against the Denver Broncos, although the Vikings insisted he was dealing with a minor injury, and Minnesota bided its time until a suitable offer was presented by the Giants.
J.J. McCarthy’s trade to the Giants was a long time coming
If that seems like a lot, it’s because it is. McCarthy’s supporters will note that 10 starts isn’t a large sample size to throw in the towel, but it also is more than Trey Lance got with the San Francisco 49ers.
Taken with the third overall pick in the 2021 draft, Lance made just four starts before Kyle Shanahan pulled the plug, and he hasn’t done much since, bouncing around as a backup with the Dallas Cowboys and the Los Angeles Chargers.
It’s also notable that it felt like the relationship with McCarthy and the coaching staff was beyond repair.
SI’s Albert Breer noted that one of the reasons they pursued Murray to be their starting quarterback last offseason was because they felt he could be “a potential longer-range answer, rather than a one-year band-aid.”
Mix in the fact that leaks about McCarthy were already coming out before Monday’s trade, and it was clear that both sides probably needed to move on before ESPN’s Adam Schefter suggested the two sides were heading toward “a divorce.”
Of course, that won’t stop McCarthy’s supporters from pointing to last year’s performance against the Cowboys, where he completed 15-of-24 passes for 250 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception, and ran for another score in a 34-26 victory.
It also won’t stop them from noting that O’Connell refused to change his offense until the Vikings were virtually eliminated from contention with a 4-8 record.
But even if McCarthy goes on to hit his ceiling, it was never going to happen with the Vikings. Not when the coaching staff was upset behind the scenes.
Not when the dirty laundry was being thrown on the front steps of TCO Performance Center while he was still on the team. And not when the league knew things were so bad that teams were sending low-ball offers ahead of the 53-man roster.
Understandably, there’s some disappointment giving up on a top-10 pick. But there’s also some relief knowing that it’s over and both sides can move on.
Add us as a preferred source on Google