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With the arrival of Kyler Murray and the re-signing of Carson Wentz, there’s plenty of speculation regarding the future of J.J. McCarthy with the Minnesota Vikings.
If McCarthy loses out to Murray and falls to QB2 or even worse, loses to Wentz and becomes QB3, there will be speculation over whether the Michigan Wolverines product needs a fresh start.
Now, the likelihood is that McCarthy does his best to win the starting job, but with the NFL Draft approaching and the QB class being a thin one, could a team entice the Vikings to trade the young signal-caller? FOX Sports Radio’s Jason Smith believes that this can happen.
“So what do you do around the draft when teams start getting a little more quarterback-panicky when they are not there for them, or they do not get a great grade on someone in the second or third round?” Smith said on the March 20 edition of “The Jason Smith Show with Mike Harmon.”
“‘Hey, wait a minute. Getting J.J. McCarthy is going to be better than getting anybody else in this draft outside of Fernando Mendoza, because the guy has played a little bit.’ Maybe he is still good and just needs a change of scenery, whatever it is. But J.J. McCarthy projects better than just about anybody else.
“You are not getting anybody else in free agency this year. So when you get to the draft, right around it, right before or right after, yeah, I can see this being a deal where McCarthy gets dealt to a quarterback-needy team.”
Kyler Murray Is the Favorite to Win Vikings Starting QB Job
Alec Lewis of The Athletic wrote that he has spoken with people around the league who expect Murray to be the Vikings’ starter. He also offered a tough reality check for McCarthy and what it could take to win that job.
“You talk to people in the league, and they’re like, it is a little silly,” Lewis said on the March 18 edition of “The Alec Lewis Show.” “There’s a guy who’s played seven years and thrown for 3,500 yards four times, a guy as dynamic as he is, who chose the Minnesota Vikings over other opportunities. You’re not doing that if you’re not the starting quarterback.
“It would take something beyond drastic for J.J. to come out and win the job, which isn’t a referendum on J.J. or where he is. He has shown the high-end flashes. It’s just going to be about consistency, and it will be really interesting to see what he looks like fundamentally.”
Would Minnesota Consider Trading J.J. McCarthy?
Should McCarthy lose the competition, questions will arise about whether the Vikings could consider trading him. On March 13, Lewis also shared whether McCarthy could be on the trade block later at some point this year.
“[Trading McCarthy] cannot be completely ruled out, “ Lewis wrote in his article. “Two factors matter in the overall calculus: How perturbed are McCarthy and his camp by the Murray signing? And what would other teams offer?
“The Vikings have publicly reiterated their feelings about McCarthy and that they see an advantage in giving him competition. They aren’t completely all in for 2026, evidenced by their measured approach in free agency. But they’re also not punting on a season that must reestablish their standing as formidable foes in the NFC North.”
Eduardo Razo Eduardo Razo is a sports writer for Heavy.com, covering the NFL, MLB, and college football. He has previously covered the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB for NBC Sports Washington and NBC Sports Bay Area & California, and has freelanced for PSG Talk, covering Paris Saint-Germain. He also worked as an editor at Athlon Sports, focusing on MLB and the NFL. More about Eduardo Razo
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