The Minnesota Vikings are heading into Week 3 with a chance to open 3-0 for the first time since 2024, and only the sixth time since 2000, if they can knock off the 0-2 Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.
They’ll have Kyler Murray back in the lineup after the 29-year-old first-year Viking missed Week 2’s win in Chicago. Murray was concussed on the 11th play of Minnesota’s opener against the Green Bay Packers.
Behind him, Carson Wentz will serve as QB2, with the 33-year-old NDSU alum stepping in after Murray went down. JJ McCarthy, the 2024 first-round pick, will be inactive as QB3 and only available in an emergency in Tampa.
That kind of depth-chart slide has kept McCarthy out of the spotlight lately, but the conversation around him picked up again on Tuesday for a very different reason. Veteran NFL reporter Gary Myers suggested the New York Giants should call the Vikings and explore a trade for McCarthy after news that their starter, Jaxson Dart, may be lost for the season with a knee injury suffered in Week 2.
“If Jaxson Dart is done for the year, I think the @Giants should trade for Vikings third-string QB J.J. McCarthy.
GM Joe Schoen considered him w/6th overall pick in 2024 (they took Malik Nabers). McCarthy helped Jim Harbaugh win national championship in 2023 and he loves McCarthy.
John and Jim often sign players with a history with each other. Probably would cost only mid-round pick and Giants could run same RPO offense they were using with Dart that is not suited to Jameis Winston.
If McCarthy plays well for Giants, can build up his value to trade him after season or supplant Winston as Dart’s backup. Low-risk move.
McCarthy has been huge disappointment in Minnesota but he’s only 23 years old, a few months older than Dart.”
Myers’ point about age lines up with the numbers. Dart is only a few months younger than McCarthy, even though Dart went No. 25 overall in 2025 after McCarthy was taken No. 10 overall by Minnesota in 2024.
Their NFL tracks have gone in very different directions. McCarthy has started just 10 games and has completed 57% of his passes for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. A knee injury in his rookie year wiped out that season and, as the source notes, clearly slowed his development.
Dart, meanwhile, has already logged 16 NFL games and 14 starts. He’s completed 64.9% of his passes and has thrown for 2,522 yards, 18 touchdowns and five interceptions.
The Giants’ interest in McCarthy is hardly new. They reportedly considered him seriously during the 2024 draft before choosing Malik Nabers at No. 6 overall.
And this wasn’t even the first time this summer they came up as a possible landing spot. In late August, Jason La Canfora had already mentioned New York as a team that could have interest in trade talks for McCarthy if Minnesota made him available at the right price.
With Dart’s status now in doubt, the idea of the Giants revisiting that conversation suddenly looks a lot more real than it did a month ago.
In Other News...
Michigans WR3 Battle Just Took An Unexpected Turn Before Iowa
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Travis Johnson and Jaime Ffrench, who had been in the mix before, have slipped back in the pecking order. Johnson has one catch and a carry this season, while Ffrench still has yet to record a reception, leaving the Wolverines with a younger group trying to seize a role before Iowa arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan's Young QB Just Made A Bigger Roster Debate More Urgent
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The bigger question around Carr is part of a broader roster conversation that has only grown more urgent in the transfer portal era. Whittingham also addressed how the Wolverines approach retention, especially with the NCAAs new 5-for-5 eligibility rule giving coaches more flexibility to use players in up to five games without burning a redshirt season. For a team trying to manage young talent carefully, the rule creates opportunity, but it also raises the stakes every time a promising reserve gets on the field. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan's Run Game Has A New Concern Ahead Of Iowa
Michigans ground game heads into the Iowa matchup with a fresh layer of uncertainty as Jordan Marshall works through a nagging injury. The sophomore back has been an important part of the offense through the first three games, piling up 135 rushing yards and two touchdowns while averaging 4.0 yards per carry, a step down from last seasons efficiency but still enough to keep him central to the Wolverines plans.
Kyle Whittingham said Marshall is expected to play unless there is a setback, which at least gives Michigan some reassurance before a game where every carry figures to matter. Still, any lingering issue with Marshall changes the calculus for an offense that has leaned on him for physical, steady production, and the Wolverines will be watching closely to see how much he can handle once the game starts unfolding. [Read more 🡒]