The New York Giants are trading for Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy just one week after losing their starter, Jaxson Dart, for the season because of a knee injury.
The Giants sent a 2027 fifth-round pick to the Vikings to land McCarthy, a first-round pick from the 2024 NFL Draft who had fallen out of favor after two-plus seasons in Minnesota.
McCarthy missed his entire rookie season because of a knee injury before being named the Vikings' starting quarterback for the 2025 campaign. He struggled across 10 starts that season, posting a 6-4 record but completing just 57.6% of his passes for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
McCarthy spent the 2026 NFL offseason competing with Kyler Murray for the Vikings' starting job. The
job was ultimately handed to Murray before Week 1 of the preseason; meanwhile, McCarthy ended up losing the backup job to veteran Carson Wentz and began the season as the Vikings' emergency third-string quarterback.
Now, McCarthy will join John Harbaugh – brother of McCarthy's college coach at Michigan, Jim Harbaugh – in the hopes that a change of scenery can restore some of the prospect shine that dulled across his tenure with the Vikings.
But what opportunities will McCarthy be given to prove himself? Here's how the Giants are planning to use the 23-year-old after acquiring him via trade.
Will J.J. McCarthy start for the Giants?
McCarthy isn't expected to be immediately elevated into the Giants' starting quarterback job after being acquired via trade from the Vikings.
Harbaugh indicated during his postgame news conference following New York's 12-7 win over the Tennessee Titans in Week 3 that the team was planning to keep veteran Jameis Winston entrenched as its starting quarterback regardless of how it addressed the position.
"Yes. Yes, I do," Harbaugh told reporters when asked whether he believed Winston would be the team's starter moving forward. "Yes, I do."
Harbaugh also made it clear that Winston's performance against the Titans would " not at all" impact his status as the team's starting quarterback.
"The plans are the plans," Harbaugh said. "The opportunities that you have are the opportunities you have. No matter what, we're going to do everything we can to make our team as strong as we can based on what options we have."
Winston, 32, is a 12-year NFL veteran who was selected No. 1 overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2015 NFL Draft. He has a career record of 37-53 across 90 starts and has completed 60.9% of his passes for 25,021 yards, 156 touchdowns and 114 interceptions.
Winston is known for having a gunslinger's mentality, which caused him to endure turnover issues during his time as a starter. He is the lone quarterback in NFL history to record at least 30 touchdowns and 30 interceptions in a single season – a feat he achieved with the Buccaneers in 2019 – but is also one of just nine different NFL quarterbacks to record at least 5,000 passing yards in a season.
If Winston's turnover issues flare up, that could afford McCarthy a chance to usurp the starting role from the veteran. For now, though, Harbaugh seems content to trust Winston, who signed a two-year extension on eve of the 2026 campaign to keep him tethered to New York through the 2028 NFL season.
Giants QB depth chart
McCarthy seems likely to slot in as the Giants' top backup quarterback after being acquired from the Vikings. Below is a look at the pecking order within the room with Dart out of action.
- Jameis Winston
- J.J. McCarthy
- Jake Haener
Haener, a 2023 fourth-round pick by the New Orleans Saints, began the season on the Giants' practice squad as their third-string quarterback. He was signed to the active roster ahead of Week 3 and served as Winston's backup against the Titans.
Haener – who has an 0-1 record in one career start and has completed 46.2% of his career passes for 226 yards, one touchdown and one interception – figures to revert to his third-string role with McCarthy in tow. However, he may remain the backup short-term as McCarthy acclimates to the Giants' Matt Nagy and Greg Roman-led offense.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: The Giants just traded for J.J. McCarthy. Will he start for them?
