Heading into the offseason, the development of J.J. McCarthy was arguably the Minnesota Vikings’ top priority. Fast forward six months, and McCarthy has not only been replaced by Kyler Murray as the QB1 in Minnesota, but it’s also looking increasingly likely that Carson Wentz will operate as QB2.
Now there’s even speculation that the Vikings may not even keep the 23-year-old former first-round pick on the roster.
NFL World Fuels J.J. McCarthy Trade Rumors
On Friday, the Vikings play their preseason finale. Yet, the raw third-year QB won’t get any further opportunities to gain on-field experience.
According to ESPN’s Vikings insider Kevin Seifert, McCarthy won’t suit up against the Denver Broncos on Friday night. The 10th overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft suffered a minor ankle injury in last week’s preseason loss, and the team wants to hold him out of action as a precautionary measure.
Yet, the internet is taking McCarthy’s absence from the lineup as a sign that a trade could be in the works. It piggybacks off Benjamin Allbright’s report that teams have begun calling about the young QB’s trade availability.
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Allbright saw Seifert’s report too and responded by noting his situation may be worth watching.
“👀”
— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) August 28, 2026
Though, a few out there think “something is just way off here,” believing a trade is the natural outcome for McCarthy, as Harrison Graham wrote, “Something is just way off here. I think he gets traded. He should be fighting for his life/career to play.”
While that’s one way of looking at it, another is that McCarthy doesn’t want to do anything that could potentially damage the way he’s viewed around the NFL, especially if he’s not playing at full strength.
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Heck, McCarthy already may feel like he got a raw deal, being pushed down the Vikings’ QB hierarchy after possibly playing hurt last season, too. Thus, holding himself out could essentially be viewed as McCarthy further protecting himself, not wanting to put an embarrassing display on film if his ankle truly isn’t up to par.
Others believe there’s a “non-zero chance” that McCarthy has already played his last down as a member of the Vikings.
“There’s a non-zero chance JJ McCarthy has played his final snap as a Minnesota Viking,” Garret Greenlee said on X.
Meanwhile, one commenter came up with a new term, saying we could “call it a trade injury.” It suggests the Vikings are keeping him out of action to make sure a potential deal to another team doesn’t fall through because of further injury.
We could call it a trade injury. https://t.co/AAKsGgWlk0
— Wendell Ferreira (@wendellfp) August 28, 2026
Yet, McCarthy’s current ankle injury is believed to be minor. The team may also want to make sure he doesn’t suffer something more serious ahead of Sunday’s roster cutdown deadline.
“Translation: the Vikings are trying to trade him and don’t want him to get hurt,” Mike Maher said on X.
Translation: the Vikings are trying to trade him and don’t want him to get hurt https://t.co/kjohlRD4Sq
— Mike Maher (@mikeMaher) August 28, 2026
Others were quick to joke that McCarthy’s current career trajectory could place him outside of the NFL entirely in the near future.
“At this rate, the career trajectory of JJ McCarthy will have him working a Jiffy Lube by mid-September.”
At this rate, the career trajectory of JJ McCarthy will have him working a Jiffy Lube by mid-September. https://t.co/UQ3EfpcId6
— Brian Webber (@bwwebber) August 28, 2026
For the most part, the internet seems to believe McCarthy could soon be on a new team, possibly before Sunday’s roster cutdown deadline passes.
“Who could have seen this coming? J.J. McCarthy will be on a different team by Sunday,” Patrick Siepman wrote on X.
Who could have seen this coming?
J.J. McCarthy will be on a different team by Sunday. https://t.co/ZjCQhjMhCj
— Patrick Siepman (@PatSieps) August 28, 2026
The Vikings don’t appear eager to trade McCarthy. Yet perhaps new general manager Nolan Teasley believes it’s now or never if the team wants some sort of return on their initial investment.
McCarthy played 10 games last year, throwing for 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. He posted an impact score of 67.0, ranking fifth-worst in the league, according to PFN’s QB Impact Metric.
