There was a ton of hype for what J.J. McCarthy could represent for the Minnesota Vikings. After years of purely passing quarterbacks like Kirk Cousins at the helm, head coach Kevin O’Connell took a swing to bring in a dynamic presence under center.
However, just two seasons into his career, the team has already given the starting nod to Kyler Murray instead. Now, one insider believes that the former national champion’s days could be numbered with the franchise.
J.J. McCarthy Is Becoming Expendable for the Vikings
After being sidelined for his entire rookie campaign, McCarthy took over the starting role in 2025, but without much success.
Playing in 10 games, he threw for just 1,632 yards and 11 touchdowns, while giving up 12 interceptions.
As a result, he ranked at number 34 on PFN’s Quarterback Impact Metric and looked every bit like the project most people had anticipated he’d be coming out of Michigan. But a contender-like roster for the Vikings forced them to change trajectories.
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Bringing in Murray as a veteran free agent signing, they announced him as the starter right before the preseason got underway. Now, Mike Florio of NBC Sports believes that demotion could be the first sign that McCarthy is off the roster before the season even begins.
“Two weeks ago, Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy lost the starting job to Kyler Murray. Now, McCarthy could be on the verge of losing the backup job to Carson Wentz,” Florio said. “The two split reps at practice for the second team on Tuesday.”
With just one preseason game remaining on the schedule, the official 53-man roster isn’t that far away. And if the reliability of a former Super Bowl champion like Wentz is alluring to O’Connell, then McCarthy’s spot could be in jeopardy.
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“The Vikings have to ultimately fill out the depth chart,” Florio continued. “Coach Kevin O’Connell has left the door open to the possibility of the backup quarterback job being available to either guy.”
As a result, Florio finds it impossible to dismiss the possibility.
If J.J. McCarthy loses the QB2 spot to Carson Wentz, will McCarthy be on the team after the roster reduces to 53? pic.twitter.com/vdL7Z7EGM5
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) August 26, 2026
Florio added, “If McCarthy should somehow fail to be QB2 with the roster cuts coming, it’s possible that McCarthy won’t be a Viking come next Monday, whether it’s because he’s either traded or because they decide to just eat the remainder of his guaranteed salary through 2027 and release him.”
It remains to be seen how the quarterback room shakes out for the Vikings. But after drafting a guy with the 10th overall pick who was always going to take some time to develop, moving on from him after just 10 starts would be a bizarre way for the team to do business.
