For Minnesota Vikings fans, Wednesday's opening night matchup between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots served as the latest reminder that picking J.J. McCarthy to be the team's starting quarterback in 2025 over re-signing Sam Darnold has evolved into one of the worst decisions in NFL history.
Ironically, however, the Seahawks might need to make a trade for another quarterback in the near future after Darnold exited Wednesday's game in the first quarter and didn't return due to a hip injury.
Oh, what a coincidence: the Vikings just made it very clear that they're pretty much done with McCarthy by revealing that he will be the team's No. 3 quarterback in Week 1.
Perhaps former Seattle assistant general manager and current Minnesota general manager Nolan Teasley could make a phone call to his old team and see if they would be willing to trade a pair of used socks for McCarthy?
You're crazy Adam (well, yes), why would the Seattle Seahawks ever trade for Minnesota Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy?
What a dumb idea, right?
Besides, Darnold is believed to have avoided a fractured hip, according to Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald on Wednesday, so it's possible that he could be back as early as Week 2.
However, Seattle is going to have the quarterback undergo an MRI on Thursday, and that could potentially reveal a soft tissue injury that keeps Darnold sidelined for multiple weeks.
If that happens, then there are multiple reasons why the Seahawks might pick up the phone if Mr. Teasley gives them a call about McCarthy.
1. Seattle was reportedly interested in McCarthy before the 2024 NFL Draft
Several weeks after getting hired as the Seahawks' new head coach during the 2024 offseason, Macdonald and Seattle's front office were meeting with prospects before that year's NFL Draft.
McCarthy was one of those prospects whom the Seahawks met with before the 2024 draft, and the meeting with the young quarterback was reportedly a "lengthy" one, according to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer.
Macdonald was the defensive coordinator at the University of Michigan in 2021 when McCarthy was a freshman at the school, so the two certainly have familiarity with one another.
Is that Wolverine connection enough to convince the Seattle head coach to take a chance on the current Vikings signal-caller?
2. McCarthy and Darnold have already co-exhisted in the past
A few months before they drafted McCarthy in 2024, Minnesota signed Darnold to be the team's starter for the upcoming regular season while the team developed its first-round pick.
During that year together, there were never any reports or rumors that the two didn't get along. Even since Darnold's departure in the 2025 offseason, he's had nothing but nice things to say about his time with McCarthy.
Perhaps things were much different behind the scenes, but McCarthy doesn't seem like a player who would drastically alter the culture that the Seahawks have already built inside their quarterback room if they were to trade for him.
Darnold is also someone who dealt with major struggles during the early part of his NFL career, so he has plenty to share with McCarthy about how to navigate some of the difficult things that he's experienced so far during his time in the league.
3. Seattle's offense is a better fit for McCarthy than Minnesota's offense
This isn't breaking news, but the Vikings put a lot on the shoulders of their starting quarterback in the current offense that the team runs under head coach Kevin O'Connell.
It was clearly too much for McCarthy to handle in 2025, and based on his current status as the team's QB3, it doesn't seem like O'Connell is happy yet with his ability to run the scheme properly.
When it comes to how the Seahawks have run things offensively during Macdonald's tenure, though, their philosophy seems to be one that is closer to the one that McCarthy succeeded in while at Michigan.
Under Macdonald, Seattle plays excellent defense, controls the clock with its rushing attack, and puts their quarterback in a position to make easy throws to receivers.
If McCarthy is ever able to turn his career around, he might just end up being a solid-game-manager-type of quarterback, and that's completely fine. But if that's the case, then an offense like what the Seahawks' run is one that is going to give him a better shot at success.
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