Giants trade for J.J. McCarthy, giving new life to QB buried on Vikings roster - USA Today
The New York Giants are wasting little time replenishing their quarterback depth chart.
A week after starter Jaxson Dart suffered a knee injury that will cost him at least the remainder of the regular season, the Giants have acquired Minnesota Vikings backup J.J. McCarthy for a Day 3 pick in the 2027 NFL draft. Minnesota announced the deal Monday, Sept. 28, a day after starting quarterback Kyler Murray returned to the lineup and helped the Vikings run their record to 3-0. The transaction is pending until McCarthy passes a physical with the Giants.
McCarthy, 23, the tenth overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, had fallen to third on the Vikings' depth chart. He missed his entire rookie year with a meniscus injury and was inconsistent as a starter in 2025, though he wound up with a 6-4 record largely thanks to performances at the end of that season when the Vikings had already fallen out of playoff contention.
Minnesota signed Murray, the No. 1 overall pick (by the Arizona Cardinals) of the 2019 draft in the offseason, and he beat out McCarthy for the QB1 role before preseason games even started over the summer. Carson Wentz later secured the backup job and played in the first two regular-season games after Murray suffered a concussion early in Week 1.
The Giants won their first game without Dart, beating the winless Tennessee Titans 12-7 amid nor'easter conditions in the Meadowlands on Sunday. Newly promoted backup Jameis Winston had another uninspiring outing after struggling against the Los Angeles Rams, against whom Dart was injured one week ago. Winston completed 14 of 22 passes for 118 yards against Tennessee. The Giants opted for a run-heavy game plan (33 attempts) given the challenging weather but have yet to score a touchdown since Dart was injured in L.A. They will host the Arizona Cardinals in Week 4.
First-year Giants head coach John Harbaugh said last week that "all options are open" regarding the team's approach behind center after he finally admitted Dart likely wouldn't be back this season.
McCarthy rose to prominence while leading the University of Michigan to a national championship during the 2023 season while playing for Jim Harbaugh, John's younger brother. McCarthy went 27-1 as the Wolverines' starter, his only loss coming at the end of the 2022 campaign, when Michigan fell to Texas Christian University in the College Football Playoff semifinals.
Jim Harbaugh, who returned to the NFL immediately after Michigan won its title, talked glowingly of McCarthy prior to the 2024 draft but was never going to bring him to the Los Angeles Chargers, who already had a young superstar (Justin Herbert) at the position.
"I think he plays quarterback the best of any quarterback in the draft," Jim Harbaugh said at the time. "He's incredible. So, big market, small market. Cold weather, hot weather, it won't matter."
McCarthy was a bit of a conundrum to assess prior to that draft. His mobility, arm strength and gaudy record all worked in his favor, but he was surrounded by scads of NFL-caliber talent in Ann Arbor and rarely had to perform heroically in high-leverage situations for the Wolverines.
The Vikings will receive a fifth-round pick in the 2027 draft from the Giants in exchange for McCarthy.
McCarthy's rookie contract is worth a fully guaranteed $21.9 million over the first four years of his career. His base salary this season is only $836,000. The Giants will have to decide next year whether to pick up McCarthy's fifth-year option for the 2028, also a fully-secured balloon payment available to former first-round picks. If the Giants decline the option, McCarthy would become a free agent in 2028.
