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The New York Giants acquired J.J. McCarthy from the Minnesota Vikings on Monday.
ESPN’s Ian Rapoport, Adam Schefter and Mike Garafolo first reported the news.
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Of note, New York head coach John Harbaugh is the brother of McCarthy’s college coach, Jim Harbaugh.
This comes after New York quarterback Jaxson Dart suffered a season-ending knee injury against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 2. Veteran Jameis Winston has filled in for Dart, leading the Giants to a 12-7 win over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.
Harbaugh told reporters on Monday that Winston would remain the team’s starter even with McCarthy on the roster:
Harbaugh previously made it clear after Sunday’s win that he envisioned Winston remaining New York’s starting quarterback even if the team added another signal-caller.
“Yes. Yes, I do,” Harbaugh said, per ESPN’s Jordan Raanan. “Yes, I do.”
Acquiring McCarthy gives the Giants more depth at quarterback, and McCarthy even has starting experience. He was, however, behind Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz on Minnesota’s depth chart this year.
McCarthy has been plagued by health woes throughout his first two years in the NFL, as he missed his entire rookie season due to a torn meniscus.
The 23-year-old recovered in time to appear in Minnesota’s first two contests in 2025, but eventually suffered a high ankle sprain that caused him to miss five games. He was also absent for a Week 13 clash with the Seattle Seahawks due to a concussion.
McCarthy started slow in 2025, completing 54.1 percent of his passes for 929 yards and six touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions across his first six games.
He progressed as the season continued, though. In his final four appearances, he completed 64.3 percent of his throws for 703 yards and five scores while getting picked off twice.
Still, McCarthy wasn’t able to win a positional battle with Murray in training camp this year and entered the regular season as Minnesota’s third-string quarterback.
Now, McCarthy will get a fresh start in the Big Apple.
