Vikings Trade Rumors: Other NFL Teams are “100%” Coming for JJ McCarthy This Offseason

By Eric Strack |

Updated: Jan 1, 2025

JJ McCarthy, Sam Darnold - Minnesota Vikings — Credit: Photo courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings are having one of the top two regular seasons in the franchise’s modern day history. They enter the final week of their 2024 season with a chance to clinch the No. 1 seed in the NFC for the first time since 1998, which is the only other year in franchise history that the Vikings have won 15 games.

And just in case you didn’t know, our Minnesota Vikings also have a future QB controversy on their hands. Sam Darnold vs JJ McCarthy to national media being forced to cover the Vikings might as well be raw meat thrown into a den of hibernating bears just on the cusp of waking up after a long winter. Once they realize it’s there… things are going to get ugly fast.

NFL general managers are coming for JJ McCarthy…

And boy oh boy, did we see them wake up in haste early Wednesday morning when the NFL’s top insider, Adam Schefter (ESPN), got on ESPN Radio this and put a 100% chance guarantee on NFL general managers calling the Minnesota Vikings this offseason to inquire about the availability of 2024 No. 10 overall draft pick, JJ McCarthy.

“JJ McCarthy would’ve been a top if not THE top QB in this draft.”@AdamSchefter says teams will be calling the @Vikings to inquire about their rookie QB this offseason 👀 pic.twitter.com/ccgautztGb
— ESPN Radio (@ESPNRadio) January 1, 2025

“In a limited quarterback draft class, where there are far more teams that need quarterbacks than there are quarterbacks who can actually step in right away, I definitely think teams will be checking in with the Vikings to see if they have an interest in trading JJ McCarthy. Now, they may say ‘we don’t’, and that’s the end of it. But do I think teams will explore that option? Of course! Absolutely. 100%.”
Adam Schefter – ESPN Radio (Unsportsmanlike)

Look, nobody should be surprised at this, and they should settle in for a lot more of it coming soon. Even in the best of circumstances there are consequences to EVERY action. And Vikings fans are about to find that out first-hand. National media has mostly ignored Minnesota all season.

Now, they can’t. So these local storylines won’t be able to slide under the national radar anymore. Sam Darnold’s ridiculous season means the Vikings may not be able to hand the keys to JJ McCarthy quite so easily.

How much will teams be offering the Minnesota Vikings for McCarthy?

As Schefter points out, there are a lot of teams around the league who are desperate at quarterback. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Vikings have two legitimate QB options for the future, both of which have been coached up for a year by QB gurus Kevin O’Connell and Josh McCown.

Thus, teams are going to call to try and see if they can buy one, and what the cost might be. Oh, you’re probably wondering. How much would JJ McCarthy be worth on the NFL trade market? According to Schefty… “a [1st round pick] and then some”.

“Because JJ McCarthy would have been a top, if not the top quarterback in this draft class [had he come out one year later].” If the Vikings decided they wanted to trade him, which I am not sure they will, I believe they would get everything they put into him and then some. It would be a [1st round pick] and then some… and then some.”
Adam Schefter – ESPN Radio (Unsportsmanlike)

There are a lot of contributors to a shocking success story like Minnesota’s 2024 Cinderella season. Brian Flores has done a terrific job with a defense that doesn’t have a star player in his prime on the depth chart. Kevin O’Connell is the cinch Coach of the Year winner, thanks to what he has done with a former 1st round bust QB.

But their biggest decision this offseason will be at quarterback. They are going to get big time calls on both Sam Darnold and JJ McCarthy, if both guys are on their roster. It’ll make for a lot of difficult decisions and discussions, but they have to sign or franchise tag Sam Darnold and then listen to what other teams have to say on both guys.

From there, they make whatever decision is in the best interest of the Minnesota Vikings organization, before we get to summer workouts. That will depend on McCarthy’s health, what happens during the playoffs, and a bunch of other variables.

Look, I do not blame those Vikings fans who are taking more of a — ‘I’ll worry about that later’ — approach to the Darnold vs McCarthy conversation, right now. Our favorite football team has its best chance of making a Super Bowl run in over 2.5 decades, and national media members only want to discuss what will happen next year at QB.

But I also do not blame national media members for locking in on it as a topic they will now pick into 1 million pieces over the next 2-5 weeks, as the Vikings try to navigate their way to a Super Bowl. QB drama sells. So just get ready, because this conversation will likely be a major topic of discussion on all platforms for months.