Much has changed since the night the Minnesota Vikings decided to use the 10th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft on former Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
McCarthy's first two seasons with the Vikings raised plenty of questions, and as he heads into his third year with the organization, there's more uncertainty than ever about how much longer he'll be suiting up in purple and gold.
Another twist was added to McCarthy's journey with Minnesota on Thursday when the team announced that it had agreed to a new deal with veteran quarterback Carson Wentz, who spent last season as a member of the Vikings.
Following the news of Wentz's return, SKOR North's Phil Mackey shared a thought on his X profile that seems safe to say was shared with at least one portion of Minnesota's fan base.
"Feels like that's a wrap for JJ McCarthy in Minnesota."
Is J.J. McCarthy close to being done with the Minnesota Vikings after team's re-signing of Carson Wentz?
Mackey certainly isn't alone in his thinking, since his post has already generated more than 400 likes. But is he right?
Does the addition of Wentz make McCarthy more expendable?
It's certainly possible, but doesn't this addition say more about the Vikings' feelings about Max Brosmer? If Minnesota still wants to keep a young quarterback to develop next season, wouldn't they go with the one they traded up to draft in 2024 over the guy who went undrafted last year?
It definitely wouldn't be surprising if the Vikings started to receive a few phone calls from other teams about McCarthy's availability in a trade after Thursday's news. But what would it take for Minnesota to give up on the young quarterback before the start of his third season?
At this point, unless a team is willing to give the Vikings a first-round draft pick or an early second-round selection in a trade for McCarthy, Minnesota would be better off just keeping him.
Getting rid of him just to get rid of him doesn't make much sense, and whoever wants to trade for him likely wouldn't be acquiring him to become their immediate starter. So, if McCarthy is going to sit on the bench in 2026, it might as well be with a team and coaching staff that he's already spent over two years working with instead of potentially starting completely over elsewhere.
At the same time, this could all be completely wrong as well, and the Vikings could be in the middle of working on a trade involving McCarthy right now. Until that happens, though, we'll just continue to speculate about what exactly Minnesota has planned for the 23-year-old quarterback.