J.J. McCarthy’s path in Minnesota has gone from promising to precarious, and now the former Michigan star could be staring at a fresh opening somewhere else.
When the Vikings took McCarthy in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft after his national title run with Michigan, the picture looked clean. Three years later, the numbers and the depth chart tell a much rougher story: McCarthy is 6-4, his career has been interrupted by injuries, and he’s sitting third on Minnesota’s quarterback ladder.
The slide down the chart happened fast. McCarthy lost the starting job to Kyler Murray, who arrived in Minnesota in the offseason on a one-year deal.
Murray won the job before preseason even really got rolling, McCarthy was positioned as QB2, and then he was pushed all the way to QB3 before the season started, sitting behind Carson Wentz as well. Wentz went on to start in Week 2 with Murray injured.
That backdrop matters now because quarterback injuries have already piled up across the league in the first two weeks. Adam Schefter noted on September 22, 2026:
QB injuries through 2 weeks have included:
🏈Sam Darnold
🏈Caleb Williams
🏈Jaxson Dart
🏈Jayden Daniels
🏈Kyler Murray
🏈Tua Tagovailoa
For teams dealing with those hits, McCarthy suddenly looks like a name worth circling. The Giants, in particular, have lost starter Jaxson Dart to season-ending knee surgery and may not want to lean on Jameis Winston for the rest of the year.
The Bears are also dealing with uncertainty after Caleb Williams’ injury, while Tyler Bagent has entered concussion protocol, leaving Case Keenum as the only active quarterback on the roster. The Commanders are another team mentioned as a possible fit if the quarterback situation keeps getting worse.
The Giants may stand out as McCarthy’s cleanest landing spot, especially with the Harbaugh connection. John Harbaugh was not the brother who coached McCarthy at Michigan, but Jim was the one who praised his work with the Wolverines, and that relationship could carry more weight than it first appears.
A move like that would give McCarthy a chance to reset the conversation around his career. He’s been through a rocky stretch, but not one that closes the book entirely. In the right spot, with help from Malik Nabers at receiver and Cam Skattebo at running back, the load on him would be lighter than what he has dealt with in Minnesota.
The numbers from his first 10 career starts show the challenge clearly: McCarthy has more interceptions than touchdowns, 12 to 11. Still, the Vikings never exactly gave him an ideal runway beyond Justin Jefferson.
And the league has seen quarterbacks leave Minnesota and get a second life. Sam Darnold is the example sitting right there, the same quarterback McCarthy was drafted to replace.
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Andrew Babalola is among the players ruled out, while Zeke Berry appears set to return after getting back on the practice field. With coach Kyle Whittingham and defensive coordinator Jay Hill offering updates on the groups condition and the depth behind it, the bigger question now is how many of those uncertain names Michigan can actually count on when the Big Ten grind resumes. [Read more 🡒]