The Minnesota Vikings have named Kyler Murray as the starting quarterback for Week 1. The veteran quarterback won the starting job after joining the team this offseason. This has led to a few questions as to where this leaves former first-round pick J.J. McCarthy.
McCarthy was once seen as the quarterback of Minnesota’s future. He came off a National Championship with the University of Michigan when he entered the 2024 NFL Draft. And he had a track record of success at every stop before the NFL.
Things have not worked out in the NFL to this point, unfortunately. Now, it appears his time with the Vikings could be coming to a close. One NFL analyst believes the writing is on the wall for McCarthy in Minnesota.
NFL Analyst Sounds Alarm over J.J. McCarthy’s Standing with Vikings
Senior NFL News Writer Kevin Patra wrote about some of the top storylines around the league after Week 2 of the preseason. In this article, he brought up McCarthy and his battle to back up Murray.
It’s not a foregone conclusion that McCarthy will be QB2. This was especially apparent after a less-than-stellar outing in Week 2. Patra questioned whether McCarthy’s standing with the Vikings is as secure as it once was.
“J.J. McCarthy’s dismal outing Saturday, in which he airmailed would-be scores, has to put some fear into the Vikings’ coaching staff. Even as Kevin O’Connell remains upbeat, if Kyler Murray goes down with an injury midseason, who would you trust more to keep the season afloat, McCarthy or Carson Wentz? The fact that this is even a question says a lot,” Patra wrote for NFL.com.
McCarthy saw a little bit of time against the Baltimore Ravens in Minnesota’s last preseason game.
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It was not the best performance from the young signal-caller, though.
The Vikings quarterback completed 5 of the 10 passes he threw, racking up 81 passing yards. He also failed to lead the team on a scoring drive. Minnesota’s only 3 points came on a drive spearheaded by Wentz.
While the evening had some highlights, McCarthy also missed some easy layups, right in line with his 2025 campaign, which ranked him as the fifth-worst-ranked quarterback in the league on PFN’s QB Impact Metric.
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McCarthy began last season as the Vikings starting quarterback. However, he suffered an injury after Week 2 that sidelined him for 5 weeks. When he returned, he was not the same player.
Despite that, Minnesota finished with a winning record. Their 9-8 finish, coupled with a late-season win over the Detroit Lions, helped them finish third in the NFC North.
There are certainly still some believers in McCarthy. However, it’s hard to ignore that he may be fighting for more than just the backup quarterback job this fall.
