While many quarterbacks have been on the move this offseason, the Pittsburgh Steelers are still without an answer at the position. They’re waiting for Aaron Rodgers, but there’s no telling if he’ll actually re-sign with them. Their options get thin if he retires, and they might have to roll with Will Howard. However, if Kyler Murray wins the Minnesota Vikings’ starting job, Dave Dameshek wouldn’t mind if the Steelers tried to trade for J.J. McCarthy.

“Then send J.J. McCarthy to Pittsburgh,” Dameshek said recently on his Football America podcast. “That would be fine with me. I know people wouldn’t like it in Pittsburgh, but I’d be cool with it because you’ve gotta keep taking swings until you find the answer… You know you’re not going to the Super Bowl [with Rodgers]. He just won 10 games. They’re not going to the Super Bowl with a 43-year-old man.”

The Vikings selected McCarthy with the 10th pick in the 2024 draft. He’s only 23, so he’s still young, but his NFL career has been a struggle so far. He missed the entire regular season of his rookie year due to an injury.

Then, McCarthy played in 10 games last year, missing seven games due to injuries, but most of what he did do wasn’t pretty. He finished the season with 1,632 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions.

There were already many questions about McCarthy, and 2025 didn’t offer many good answers. The Vikings letting Sam Darnold walk in free agency and watching him win a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks doesn’t help, either. Now, his future in Minnesota is unclear.

The Vikings recently signed Murray, who was the first overall pick in the 2019 draft. While he hasn’t lived up to expectations, he’s been a decent starter in the past, making two Pro Bowls. He’s only on a one-year deal, but it looks like he and McCarthy will compete for the starting job.

If McCarthy loses, then perhaps the Vikings will be willing to move on from him. They invested high draft capital into him, but it might be tough for him to bounce back there if Murray is the Week 1 starter.

Would McCarthy be a good option for the Steelers, though? It’s tough to say. Several former first-round quarterbacks, including Darnold, have found success with different teams after initially appearing to be busts. However, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell is a bright offensive mind. If he can’t get McCarthy to work as an NFL starter, then the Steelers might be better off sticking with Howard if Rodgers retires.