Popular Vikings Voice Floats J.J. McCarthy Trade
A high ankle sprain has sidelined Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy for just over a month, and in his absence, one Vikings-themed personality has wondered out loud if the franchise should trade him because of his recent injury history.
There’s not much realism to the idea, but one prominent Minnesota Vikings-themed show host advanced the concept of trading J.J. McCarthy this week.
That’s the latest and greatest theory from SKOR North‘s Phil Mackey, who polled his audience on X, formerly known as Twitter, about the idea.
Trading J.J. McCarthy Becomes Midseason Discourse
The transaction won’t come to fruition, but the idea has been sponsored nevertheless.
SKOR North Host Mentions Trading J.J. McCarthy
Mackey, out of nowhere, tweeted Wednesday, “If you’re selling JJ McCarthy stock, I’ll buy it. I’m still in. BUT … it’s been 18 months — 23 possible regular season or postseason games — and he has only been physically available for two of them… So here’s my question … If a team called and offered you 2nd + 3rd round picks right now for McCarthy … would you take it?”
And because Mackey has a following of over 60,000 people, plus a YouTube show, that got the ball rolling on McCarthy trade conversations among fans.
A Deal That Just Won’t Happen
Slightly over one year ago, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell said about quarterback development, “I just think as a whole, there’s not enough emphasis put on the organization’s role in the development of the position, meaning I believe that organizations fail young quarterbacks before young quarterbacks fail organizations.”
O’Connell is in the process of putting that personal motto to the test, because as Mackey pointed out, McCarthy has missed 91% of all eligible starts.
“Just overall 30,000-foot view, I think it’s important to understand that every single one of these guys is on a journey. A very difficult journey. That they need the support, they need the teammates around them, they need the systems in place to ultimately try to maximize who they are and what their potential is because you’re still drafting players off of potential,” O’Connell said in September 2024. “And then everything that happens from that moment to when that potential becomes a reality is really on the organization if you’ve got the right guy that you’re bringing in.”
“I do believe there’s some times where things just don’t work out, and then getting a chance to kinda wipe the slate clean and get a restart while still using your previous experiences to kinda shape how you’re gonna work, why you’re gonna work, why things are important to you, will only make guys better in the end and I think we’ve seen some examples of that in our league as well over the last few years.”
It’s severely unlikely for O’Connell to emphatically state that organizations fail quarterbacks — and turn around to trade McCarthy one year later after an ankle sprain.
Therefore, Mackey’s idea is likely hogwash.
Patience Is Hard to Find among Vikings Fans
While McCarthy’s durability is assuredly concerning, the saving grace is that his injuries — a meniscus tear and high ankle sprain — aren’t utterly serious long-term maladies.
Meanwhile, Mackey spent approximately four seasons on X and his show campaigning for the end of the Kirk Cousins era, nearly daily from 2020 to 2023, encouraging the franchise to offload Cousins in favor of building around a rookie quarterback and his affordable contract.
The club eventually followed his advice by drafting McCarthy — and now Mackey has banged the drum once again on trades, this time involving the very situation he endorsed: a quarterback on a rookie contract.
Sometimes, as O’Connell hinted at, patience is key. McCarthy won’t always be injured. He will return to the starting lineup, probably in the next two weeks.
Sam Darnold Situation — But Supersized
There’s also the “one that got away” angle.
Sam Darnold chased $100.5 million over three years last offseason, joining the Seattle Seahawks’ roster. Many purple fans spent their weekends watching Darnold excel in Seattle and grumbling that Minnesota should’ve paid $100.5 million to keep him.
Daniel Jones is also balling, at least for now, with the Indianapolis Colts.
Trading McCarthy would bring the faux Darnold and Jones jealousy out in droves. Imagine McCarthy shipped to a club like the Las Vegas Raiders, and him eventually turning the corner into a Top 10 passer.
The Vikings fan base may never recover, especially if it laments Darnold’s exodus — the guy who utterly vaporized last season when the Vikings needed him the most.
Finagling a trade to ship McCarthy out of the Twin Cities is probably best reserved for a Madden franchise simulation, not the real world.
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