You win some, you lose some. But in J.J. McCarthy’s case, he seems to have lost it all. First, the Minnesota Vikings‘ QB1 job slipped away to Kyler Murray. Then, Sunday’s game against the Green Bay Packers brought another blow, as Carson Wentz moved ahead of him for the backup role. In the span of one offseason, McCarthy appears to have watched his place on the depth chart disappear piece by piece.
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Sure, head coach Kevin O’Connell said the depth chart will be revisited weekly, but this doesn’t seem like a good spot to be in after McCarthy missed his entire rookie season in 2024 and barely made an impression in 2025. Regardless, O’Connell explained the rationale behind his decision.
“Carson, he’s got almost 100 career starts,” O’Connell said. “What he was able to do last year, from a standpoint of very limited repetitions but being able to apply a career’s worth of experience, that’s kind of what you have to do as a backup quarterback – especially early on, when so much of the emphasis is on getting Kyler as comfortable as we can get him.”
McCarthy’s disappointing 2025 season was only part of the story behind his downward slide. His two preseason appearances did little to ease concerns, as he completed just 9 of 17 passes. Inconsistent. The struggles were especially clear against the Baltimore Ravens in August, when he missed multiple open receivers in the end zone. And as it turns out, the story doesn’t end there.
Minnesota had planned to give the quarterback another chance in its third preseason game against the Denver Broncos. But according to a source, he told Vikings staff members that he did not feel comfortable taking the field.
Here’s the thing: After being picked as the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the highest draft spot for a quarterback in the Minnesota Vikings’ history, many thought J.J. McCarthy would be the future of the franchise. Unfortunately, things have not turned out great for him.
Nevertheless, the Vikings haven’t abandoned McCarthy. His journey has simply been complicated: injury, poor performance, and now competition.
McCarthy’s rookie season ended before it began: a torn meniscus sidelined him entirely, derailing early hype. Then last year, the Vikings bid farewell to starter quarterback Sam Darnold, and it looked like McCarthy was set to start. Instead, poor play and injuries (ankle sprain, concussion) limited him to just 10 games.
He completed just 140 of 243 passes for 1,632 yards, including 11 touchdowns against 12 interceptions. He also got sacked 27 times last year. McCarthy ranked 36th of 40 qualified quarterbacks in total QB rating.
So, it all came down to this offseason, when the poor performances and injury-plagued McCarthy led the Vikings to sign veteran Murray to a one-year contract in March, competing with McCarthy for the starting role. Eventually, O’Connell announced Murray as the starting quarterback.
McCarthy then competed with Carson Wentz for the backup role. Though McCarthy featured in the first two preseason games, completing 9 of 17 passes, he suffered an ankle injury in the second game against the Baltimore Ravens.
Still, O’Connell praised McCarthy’s professionalism and said that he had a “bunch of talent and a bunch of things that make him a guy that we want to pour into every single day.”
Despite the demotion, one Vikings executive believes McCarthy’s story is far from over.
Vikings’ general manager shows support for J.J. McCarthy amid the demotion
Though McCarthy is not in a great position right now, this doesn’t mean that he doesn’t have people still backing him up. General manager Nolan Teasley thinks McCarthy’s chances of playing his part on the roster remain clear.
“J.J. McCarthy’s role is to continue to develop, to improve, and to support his teammates,” Teasley said earlier this month. “And he’s done an excellent job of that from the moment that I’ve been here and, from my understanding, since he walked through the door.”
Although Teasley also expected McCarthy to be part of the Week 1 clash, that has not been the case so far. However, that doesn’t mean his story ends here. Teasley further said how “talented” McCarthy is, having “good arm strength.”
So, McCarthy’s story is not written yet.
Now, only time will tell what McCarthy’s story will look like in the Vikings jersey.