The Minnesota Vikings had Sam Darnold in their building but let him go so J.J. McCarthy could be their starting quarterback. Now that we’ve seen the 2025 season play out, it’s safe to say that was a mistake.
McCarthy struggled as the starter for the Vikings, completing 57.6% of his passes for 1,632 yards with 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Darnold, meanwhile, will have a chance to lead the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl title this Sunday.
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While the Vikings have McCarthy under team control for the next three years, patience is running thin. After all, we’re only a week removed from general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah getting fired.
Could McCarthy win over the decision-makers for the Vikings between now and Week 1? Absolutely, but ESPN’s Kevin Seifert expects them to “take a big swing” for an established quarterback.
“In the big picture, McCarthy is a talented player who just turned 23 and has a total of 10 NFL starts. Few NFL teams would give up on a quarterback with that profile, and many team builders are particularly enamored with optimizing a quarterback’s rookie contract. Adofo-Mensah was one of them, but his departure is a reminder of the range of outcomes that approach can lead to,” Seifert said. “If anything, these events increase the chances that the Vikings will take a big swing at finding a veteran quarterback who could start in 2026. The only thing more damaging than making the mistakes the Vikings made last season would be to repeat them this year.”
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Dec 14, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) leaves the field after a game against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images© Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images.
(© Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images.)Who will the Vikings target?
Jason Harmon of SKOR North recently mentioned Mac Jones as an option for Minnesota.
“Source with inside knowledge shared Mac Jones is definitely on the Vikings radar, but there are a number of other teams interested,” Harmon said.
Jones had a bounce-back season with the San Francisco 49ers, completing 69.6% of his passes for 2,151 yards with 13 touchdowns and six interceptions. Since they already have Brock Purdy at quarterback, they could part ways with Jones for a Day 2 draft pick.
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If the Vikings trade for Jones, he’d most likely be the favorite to start heading into training camp.
This story was originally published by The Spun on Feb 7, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.