Vikings Trade QB J.J. McCarthy to Giants for Fifth-Round Pick
The trade, which Minnesota announced Monday, is pending a physical. The Giants had not announced it or a corresponding roster move as of 2:25 p.m. EDT.
Update, Sept. 28, 2:25 p.m. EDT: The Vikings announced the trade. This story, first published at 12:35 p.m. as a report, has been updated with the team's announcement.
The Minnesota Vikings traded quarterback J.J. McCarthy to the Giants on Monday for a 2027 fifth-round pick, the Vikings announced. The deal is pending a physical. The Giants had not announced the trade or a corresponding roster move as of 2:25 p.m. EDT.
Tom Pelissero of The Ringer and Netflix, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network and Adam Schefter of ESPN first reported the trade at 12:08 p.m. In a follow-up on his Substack, Pelissero reported that talks began Wednesday and that the deal came together after Minnesota's quarterbacks came out of Sunday's win at Tampa Bay healthy.
McCarthy, 23, was the No. 10 overall pick in 2024 out of Michigan, where he played for Jim Harbaugh, the brother of Giants coach John Harbaugh. He spent his rookie season on injured reserve with a knee injury, then went 6-4 in 10 starts in 2025 with 11 touchdown passes, 12 interceptions and a 72.6 passer rating. He was third on the Vikings' depth chart this season, behind Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz. His rookie contract runs through 2027 and includes $3.78 million in fully guaranteed salary for that season. The Giants had $10.9 million in 2026 cap space on Monday.
Jameis Winston started Sunday's 12-7 win over the Titans. Asked after the game whether he expected Winston to start against Arizona regardless of who the Giants brought in, Harbaugh said, "Yes. Yes, I do." Jaxson Dart went on injured reserve Sept. 24 with a knee injury, and Harbaugh has said he will miss the rest of the regular season but did not rule out a playoff return.
Jake Haener, signed to the 53-man roster Saturday, is the only other quarterback on the active roster. Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reported Monday that the Giants will waive Haener and return him to the practice squad if he clears waivers, and that no other quarterback is being added for now.
The Giants host the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.