Few teams in the NFL went into Week 2 with the level of optimism the New York Giants took west for a Monday Night Football matchup with the Super Bowl favorite Los Angeles Rams.
Few teams in the NFL are in as dire straits before Week 3 as the Giants, who now must navigate a season that — most likely – will not include starting quarterback and 2025 1st-round pick Jaxson Dart after he injured his knee in the 1st quarter against the Rams.
One venerated, longtime Giants writer put together a trade idea that might save the season after reports surfaced Dart’s injury was worse than previously imagined.
As of right now, former No. 1 overall pick and longtime backup Jameis Winston will be the starter moving forward.
“If Jaxson Dart is done for the year, I think the Giants should trade for Vikings third-string QB J.J. McCarthy,” wrote Gary Myers, author of “Once A Giant. A Story of Victory, Tragedy and Life After Football” about the 1986 Super Bowl champion Giants. “GM Joe Schoen considered him w/6th overall pick in 2024 (they took Malik Nabers). McCarthy helped Jim Harbaugh win national championship in 2023 and he loves McCarthy. John and Jim often sign players with a history with each other. Probably would cost only mid-round pick and Giants could run same RPO offense they were using with Dart that is not suited to Jameis Winston. If McCarthy plays well for Giants, can build up his value to trade him after season or supplant Winston as Dart’s backup. Low-risk move. McCarthy has been huge disappointment in Minnesota but he’s only 23 years old, a few months older than Dart.”
McCarthy Flamed Out Over 1st 2 Seasons With Vikes
McCarthy, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, has had a rough road with the Vikings, where he was replaced by former No. 1 overall pick Kyler Murray after just 1 disappointing season as the starter.
Even when the Vikings had a chance to turn back to McCarthy as the starter after Murray went down early in Week 1 with a concussion, they went to former NFL All-Pro Carson Wentz, who helped guide the Vikings to a 2-0 start.
“The writing is on the wall for J.J. McCarthy,” SB Nation’s Jarrett Bailey wrote on July 22. “The Vikings won 14 games with Sam Darnold, didn’t bring him back, and then watched him win a Super Bowl while they limped to a 9-8 record. McCarthy completed less than 60 percent of his passes with 11 touchdowns to 12 interceptions.”
In this case, the value of McCarthy in a trade might be negligible — think something similar to when the Dallas Cowboys traded a 4th-round pick to the San Francisco 49ers for former No. 3 overall pick Trey Lance in 2023. The Giants could afford that.
Vikings Made Bad QB Decision for the Ages
Minnesota went 14-3 in 2024 with Sam Darnold as the starting quarterback in 2024, and instead of bringing him back, they let him leave in free agency, where he signed a 3-year, $100 million contract with the Seattle Seahawks and led them to a Super Bowl win in his 1st season.
In their place, the Vikings decided to ride with 2024 1st-round pick (No. 10 overall) J.J. McCarthy, who couldn’t stay healthy and looked like 1 of the NFL’s worst quarterbacks when he was on the field.
That came after McCarthy missed his entire rookie season due to a torn meniscus, becoming the 1st NFL quarterback picked in the 1st round to miss his rookie season due to injury in league history.
Giants’ Jaxson Dart Injury Update Fuels Trade Idea for Replaced 1st-Round Pick