The New York Giants have been quite busy as of late, with their biggest move seeing them acquire J.J. McCarthy in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings. After losing Jaxson Dart to a season-ending knee injury, the Giants decided to reinforce their quarterback position by acquiring McCarthy from the Vikings in exchange for a 2027 fifth-round pick.
There is a notable tie between McCarthy and the Giants, as his new head coach, John Harbaugh, is the brother of McCarthy’s former college coach at the Michigan Wolverines, Jim Harbaugh. Now in the NFL with the Los Angeles Chargers, Jim revealed whether or not John reached out to him in an effort to vet McCarthy before pulling the trigger on the aforementioned trade.
Jim Harbaugh Urged John Harbaugh, Giants to Trade for J.J. McCarthy
McCarthy won a National Championship while playing under Jim’s tutelage at Michigan in 2023. During that time, McCarthy turned himself into a highly-touted quarterback prospect, as he completed 72.3% of his passes for 2,991 yards and 22 touchdowns, while also rushing for 202 yards and three more scores.
Unfortunately, McCarthy’s success has not translated to the NFL, as injuries and poor production led to the Vikings willingly parting ways with the 2024 No. 10 overall pick when the Giants came calling. Through 10 games in the NFL, McCarthy has completed just 57.6% of his passes for 1,632 yards and 11 touchdowns.
New York will use McCarthy as its backup behind Jameis Winston, with its run-heavy scheme being more of a fit for his playstyle. While McCarthy hasn’t found his way in the NFL yet, if there’s one guy who knows what he’s capable of, it’s Jim, and he revealed that he encouraged his brother John to trade for his former Wolverines quarterback when the opportunity arose.
“John called me and asked me. I said, ‘John, I love you. I love J.J. I think you guys would be good,'” Harbaugh said when asked by reporters on Wednesday.
Giants Take Flier on J.J. McCarthy Amid Jaxson Dart Injury
Dart is New York’s quarterback of the future, and his knee injury isn’t going to change that. However, McCarthy has a significant amount of promise, too. Sure, he’s been awful to this point, but he’s still only 23 years old, and he is now playing for a coach he is about as similar a person to Jim Harbaugh as you can get.
McCarthy isn’t starting under center just yet, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him find his way onto the field in the near future. At the very least, the Giants should be willing to see what they have in McCarthy, as they could build him up and turn him into a valuable trade chip in the future. When New York returns to action in Week 4 against the Arizona Cardinals, though, it’s going to be Winston who finds himself running the team’s offense.
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