The Minnesota Vikings decided to end the J.J. McCarthy era on Sept. 28 after only three seasons and a handful of regular-season games. Minnesota traded McCarthy to the New York Giants for a 2027 fifth-round pick, and now the former first-round pick gets a fresh start.
McCarthy heads to New York to serve as the backup to Jameis Winston. However, if Winston continues to struggle, as he has in the last two games after taking over for Jaxson Dart, who is done for the season, McCarthy could have a chance to start.
Nonetheless, this trade to the Giants should also serve as a wake-up call for McCarthy that he probably needs to make changes to his game to make the most of his situation in New York.
As a result, former Vikings wideout Adam Thielen shared that he’s excited about this fresh start for his ex-teammate.
“J.J. gets a fresh start,” Thielen said in a Sept. 29 video from SiriusXM NFL Radio. “He gets an opportunity to prove who he is and who he thinks he is and the Vikings kind of cut ties and get to move on and plan for their future now without him being the developmental guy to really pour a lot of time and energy into to develop him. So I think, again, it’s not a surprising thing.
“The longer you’ve been around this league and in this league and seeing all the stuff that’s happened over the years, it’s not surprising. And again, I’m very excited for J.J. to get that fresh start, to get a new set of eyes on him, for people to kind of judge him for who he is. And we’ll see what happens.”
J.J. McCarthy Urged to Take Page From Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield
During his time with the Vikings, McCarthy had a passer rating of 72.6 with 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions, per StatMuse. Furthermore, Thielen would like McCarthy to take a page from Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield and flourish elsewhere.
“I think Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, and a lot of these guys, Kyler Murray, there’s a lot of guys that get doubted after they’re a high draft pick,” Thielen added. “They don’t play well right away. They get pushed around the league a little bit, and then they get their opportunity again, and some make the most of it, some don’t.”
Micah Parsons Has Words for Vikings Over J.J. McCarthy Trade
Meanwhile, the Vikings appear content with their QB situation, with Kyler Murray as the starter and Carson Wentz as the backup. Despite being an NFC North rival, Green Bay Packers‘ Micah Parsons didn’t hold back his thoughts on Minnesota’s decision to trade McCarthy.
“I’m not going to lie, I’m disappointed in the Vikings for that,” Parsons said in a Sept. 28 video on Bleacher Report’s YouTube channel. “I’m so disappointed. I love it for the Giants because obviously they need a backup quarterback, but this guy is in his third year in the league. He was injured his rookie year, and Sam Darnold started. Sam took off.
“They decided not to let Sam Darnold come out of the building. The whole point was he was going to be the franchise guy. If you’re saying, “Hey, we’re not going to pay Sam Darnold, who’s a Super Bowl champion now,” what are we doing as a front office? How are we going to keep allowing this? And this is just across the league.”
Adam Thielen Gets Candid on Vikings Trading J.J. McCarthy to Giants