{"id":788872,"date":"2026-03-03T11:20:27","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T11:20:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/788872\/"},"modified":"2026-03-03T11:20:27","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T11:20:27","slug":"nfc-free-agency-rumors-j-j-mccarthy-d-j-moore-bears-packers-vikings-qb-targets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/788872\/","title":{"rendered":"NFC Free Agency Rumors: J.J. McCarthy, D.J. Moore, Bears, Packers, Vikings QB Targets"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kevin Fishbain and Dan Wiederer of The Athletic<\/a> don\u2019t believe Bears WR D.J. Moore<\/a> is off limits, as they could use the salary cap relief considering he hasn\u2019t performed to his $28.5 million cap number.\u00a0
\nOne league source raised concerns to Fishbain regarding Moore\u2019s connection with QB Caleb Williams<\/a>: \u201cIt\u2019s clear to me Caleb doesn\u2019t have a ton of trust in DJ. I don\u2019t think DJ has lost a step or anything like that. All the physical ability is still there. But at times, that\u2019s what it boils down to. If your quarterback, for whatever reason, doesn\u2019t have that trust, there becomes a disconnect.\u201d
\nFishbain mentions there\u2019s a sense within the team that Moore will return, but Chicago could be enticed to move him if they can get a fourth-round pick or conditional third-round pick.
\nWith LB Tremaine Edmunds<\/a> being granted permission to seek a trade, Chicago is looking for speed as the biggest trait in replacements in that room.\u00a0
\nBears GM Ryan Poles is on record saying he wants S Kevin Byard<\/a> back but it might be tough, as Fishbain says he\u2019s expected to get something like two years, $15 million.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brad Biggs<\/a> of the Chicago Tribune said the Bears aren\u2019t interested in trading DT Gervon Dexter<\/a>: \u201cThey\u2019re not taking calls on him. They\u2019re not making calls on him\u2026I\u2019m reporting nothing is happening on that\u2026 They\u2019ve got two defensive tackles under contract, they\u2019re not looking to move one. Gervon Dexter<\/a> will be with the Bears next season.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sports Illustrated\u2019s Albert Breer<\/a> thinks Packers LT Rasheed Walker<\/a> lands around or over $20 million a year as a free agent.\u00a0
\nThe Athletic\u2019s Matt Schneidman<\/a> thinks Packers GM Brian Gutekunst tipped his hand about inside linebacker, and that LB Quay Walker<\/a> will get more in free agency than Green Bay is comfortable matching.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Alec Lewis of The Athletic<\/a> reports that the Vikings want to add an experienced, reliable veteran at quarterback, with options including Geno Smith<\/a>, Kyler Murray<\/a>, Derek Carr<\/a>, Kirk Cousins<\/a>\u00a0and Joe Flacco<\/a>.
\nSources told Lewis that QB J.J. McCarthy<\/a> is considered inconsistent by the team, and they feel he must take a major step forward on and off the field. Lewis explains the Vikings didn\u2019t know what they would get with McCarthy during games and practice.
\nHe also wrote the Vikings were caught off guard by the challenges McCarthy had with some of the elemental aspects of being the face of a franchise, and these growth hurdles have become widely known among NFL executives and coaches.
\nLewis adds Minnesota is intentionally casting a broad net to not get caught without a seat like last year when their preferred options signed elsewhere. He says the Vikings think Smith would fit great into the locker room but the Raiders have to cut him first.
\nMurray would be cheap once he\u2019s cut by Arizona as expected, but Lewis notes there would need to be discussions about how he\u2019d fit into the picture with McCarthy. Carr would require a trade with the Saints who own his rights, Cousins would require ownership approval and an agreement on salary. Flacco is the equivalent of their safety school and final fallback option.\u00a0
\nLewis mentions 49ers QB Mac Jones<\/a> is too expensive in terms of trade compensation, and Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers<\/a> would eliminate any competition aspect with McCarthy.
\nAs for potential cap cuts, Lewis notes that veteran DT Jonathan Allen<\/a> and C Ryan Kelly <\/a>are at risk of being released. The Vikings have already indicated they will cut DT Javon Hargrave<\/a> and RB Aaron Jones<\/a>.
\nOne candidate Lewis mentioned for an extension is RT Brian O\u2019Neill<\/a>, noting that it will take some negotiating for the two sides to reach a deal.
\nESPN\u2019s Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano<\/a> list Vikings WR Jalen Nailor<\/a> as a pending free agent poised to do much, much better than people expect on the open market.\u00a0
\nAccording to Vincent Bonsignore<\/a>, there was talk at the combine about the Vikings and retired QB Derek Carr<\/a>, who has indicated an interest in returning next season.
\nIn his Combine rumors notebook, NBC Sports\u2019 Matthew Berry<\/a> says the sense in Indianapolis was that the smart money was on \u201cthe field\u201d over McCarthy as the Vikings\u2019 Week 1 starter.
\nBerry was told that by midseason, the Vikings had to scale the playbook back to accommodate McCarthy.\u00a0
\nHe hasn\u2019t heard Carr connected to Minnesota but he has heard Murray and Rodgers, who HC Kevin O\u2019Connell<\/a> was interested in last year, along with Smith. Packers QB Malik Willis<\/a> is an outside option if he\u2019s not too expensive. Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa<\/a> doesn\u2019t seem to be on Minnesota\u2019s radar, per Berry.<\/p>\n

Looking for the latest NFL Insider News & Rumors?<\/p>\n

Be sure to follow NFL Trade Rumors<\/a> on X.com<\/a>\u00a0and FACEBOOK<\/a>\u00a0for breaking NFL News and Rumors for all 32 teams!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Kevin Fishbain and Dan Wiederer of The Athletic don\u2019t believe Bears WR D.J. Moore is off limits, as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":783303,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2073],"tags":[1586,8042,2498,496,7,1507,7241,1519,3973,562,9085,4861,294,4827,5215,4097,233,259,2529,6,468,3993,8316,7401,3452,234],"class_list":{"0":"post-788872","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-minnesota-vikings","8":"tag-aaron-rodgers","9":"tag-brian-oneill","10":"tag-d-j-moore","11":"tag-derek-carr","12":"tag-football","13":"tag-geno-smith","14":"tag-gervon-dexter","15":"tag-j-j-mccarthy","16":"tag-jalen-nailor","17":"tag-joe-flacco","18":"tag-jonathan-allen","19":"tag-kevin-byard","20":"tag-kirk-cousins","21":"tag-kyler-murray","22":"tag-mac-jones","23":"tag-malik-willis","24":"tag-minnesota","25":"tag-minnesota-vikings","26":"tag-minnesotavikings","27":"tag-nfl","28":"tag-quay-walker","29":"tag-rasheed-walker","30":"tag-ryan-kelly","31":"tag-tremaine-edmunds","32":"tag-tua-tagovailoa","33":"tag-vikings"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116164979968512727","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/788872","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=788872"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/788872\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/783303"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=788872"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=788872"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=788872"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}