Giants Trade for J.J. McCarthy After Losing Jaxson Dart for the Regular Season
Update: McCarthy called the trade a shock and spent his first week on the scout team learning the offense. Jameis Winston starts Sunday against Arizona, and John Harbaugh would not say whether McCarthy will be the backup.
The New York Giants have traded for Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy, sending a 2027 fifth-round pick to Minnesota. The Vikings announced the deal Monday, pending a physical. It follows knee surgery for Jaxson Dart that will keep him out for at least the rest of the regular season.
Why did the Giants make the move?
Dart was hurt on the first series of the Week 2 loss to the Rams and had surgery on his left knee last week. Jameis Winston has started since, and the Giants beat Tennessee 12-7 on Sunday with 238 yards of offense and no touchdowns. Asked about the quarterback plan, John Harbaugh said: "The plans are the plans. The opportunities that you have are the opportunities you have. No matter what, we're going to do everything we can to make our team as strong as we can based on what options we have." Winston is expected to start against the Cardinals.
What are they getting?
McCarthy, the 10th pick in 2024, missed his rookie year with a right knee injury and started 10 games in 2025, completing 57.6 percent of his passes for 1,632 yards with 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He lost this summer's competition to Kyler Murray and fell behind Carson Wentz on the depth chart. ESPN notes his last four starts of 2025 were much better: 64.3 percent completions, 8.4 yards per attempt and five touchdowns against two interceptions.
What does Minnesota get out of it?
A fifth-round pick and about $4.6 million in cap savings over two years, according to ESPN. The Vikings are 3-0 with Murray back from his concussion and Wentz as the backup.
What did McCarthy say?
"When I got the call here, it was a shock. I didn't anticipate it, but at the end of the day, it's an opportunity," he said. On why Minnesota didn't work: "There's a multitude of things you could think of, but at the end of the day, it's all in the past." Harbaugh said McCarthy has been immersed in the playbook "24/7 almost" and noted that his brother Jim, who coached McCarthy at Michigan, "always had good things to say about him as a quarterback and as a person."
Players in this story
Sources
- NBC News: Giants trade for QB J.J. McCarthy after Jaxson Dart's knee injury
- ESPN: J.J. McCarthy traded to Giants: Will he succeed in New York?
- ESPN: McCarthy: Trade to Giants a 'shock,' turns page on Vikings
Vikings & Giants betting odds
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