Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy had a disastrous start to his career, and the team could trade him before the start of the 2026 season. After missing his rookie season with an injury, the Michigan product entered the season under center for a team with Super Bowl aspirations. Unfortunately, Minnesota missed the playoffs largely because of their quarterback, as injuries limited him to just 10 games. Even when on the field, he only completed 57.6% of his passes for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions while ranking at or near the bottom of just about every passing statistic.
After firing former general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, the Vikings will likely re-evaluate the quarterback position and bring in some competition for the job. ESPN’s Kevin Seifert said that “all bets are off” and there’s a very real chance McCarthy isn’t under center in Week 1 next year.
Ultimately, nobody knows what will happen with J.J. McCarthy, but a trade shouldn’t surprise too many people. No team will make him their unquestioned starter, but another organization could bring him in to compete. After all, he only has 10 starts to his name and isn’t too far removed from being a top-10 pick. Seeing as the 2026 NFL Draft class is weak at the quarterback position, don’t be surprised if one of the following teams rolls the dice on the Michigan product.
3 Teams That Could Trade For J.J. McCarthy, Ranked
3. Cleveland Browns
Shedeur Sanders made the Pro Bowl, but that doesn’t mean he’s a good quarterback. While he had some promising moments as a rookie, his overall body of work left a lot to be desired. In total, he finished the year completing 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns, 10 interceptions, and a 44.1 PFF grade, dead last among qualified quarterbacks.
Quarterback is easily the most important position in football, and first-year head coach Todd Monken shouldn’t want someone with such a poor start to be his only option under center. J.J. McCarthy didn’t fare much better, but both players offer some long-term upside, and hopefully one can develop into a franchise quarterback.
2. Arizona Cardinals
Kyler Murray is still under contract, but it’s safe to assume the former first-overall pick will not return next year. While he is a starting-caliber quarterback, he’s not remotely worth his salary and first-year head coach Mike LaFleur will probably want to rebuild this organization with a new quarterback. J.J. McCarthy may not be his ideal option, but assuming his trade value is low, the McVay disciple might as well give him a shot to see if he can find more success throwing to Trey McBride, Michael Wilson, and Marvin Harrison Jr.
1. Pittsburgh Steelers
Nobody knows if Aaron Rodgers will return to the Pittsburgh Steelers next year, but even if he does, the four-time NFL MVP is playing on a year-to-year basis at this point in his career. Ironically, this could be why a J.J. McCarthy makes so much sense for this team. Pittsburgh hasn’t had any long-term hope at the quarterback position in a long, long time, and McCarthy can provide that. Giving him a year to sit and learn behind an all-time great in Rodgers could be exactly what McCarthy needs to reach his ceiling.
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